On the Border of Love and Hate
by Tomoenarayelle
Summary: When a mission turns into chaos, the rescuer needs rescuing, the rescuee rescues and... well... it's complicated. Sakura comes to terms with a reality she'd been trying to ignore: under the mask of indifference and hate, she still really loves him. SakSas
1. Chapter 1: The mission

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto and you can ask anyone you want.**

"Sakura! You should hurry! You have to meet your sensei in fifteen minutes right?"

"I know Mum! Geez don't worry so much! I've never been late before!"

Sakura checked her room to make sure she hadn't made too much of a mess getting ready. She didn't want to have to clean it all up later on. She grabbed her weapon bag and fastened it around her waist so that the pouch rested on her hip. The young kunoichi ran out the door and made her way threw the crowded streets of the village to get to the bridge where team 7 usually met so many years ago. Well, not so long ago. It had been three years since Sasuke had left Konoha in search for power. In the meantime, Sakura trained with Tsunade often with one thought in mind; "When I am strong enough I _will_ get Sasuke-kun back."

"Sakura-chan! Good morning!" came Naruto's voice, breaking Sakura from her thoughts.

"Hey Naruto. is Kakashi-sensei here yet?"

"Nope. He's probably going to be late..."

"Again." they both said in unison.

Sakura sighed. Their sensei was always late. Even when team 7 was complete, he always found some excuse.

**_"He's always late! And for what? Normally it's just for a small mission a three-year old could do!" _**yelled Inner Sakura.

Sakura mentally rolled her eyes. Her inner person had been bothering her for years, but she decided to make peace with it and actually got along with it, which is odd. They sometimes had long discussions about nothing much, but she enjoyed having someone to talk to. Even if that someone wasn't actually a person...

"What do you think we're gonna do today Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto, once again dragging Sakura out of her thoughts. She shrugged, obviously not very interested in what conversation Naruto was trying to start.

---

A half hour later of waiting and awkward silence, Kakashi finally casually walked up to the bridge with his nose burried in his book. As soon as he stepped onto the wood, he was bombarded by Sakura and Naruto.

"Kakashi-sensei you're late again! What's your excuse this time?!" shouted Naruto. No response came from him. He just kept on reading as if he had never heard Naruto.

"You're not doing it right Naruto." Sakura calmly whispered to her hyper teammate. He looked at her with questioning eyes and she just smiled in a "_watch and learn" _way.

She walked up to Kakashi who was standing still and still had his face close to his book. Sakura pushed on the back and the front of the book, shutting it on her teacher's face. Kakashi's nose got caught in abrupt closing and he immediately snapped out of his trance, staring angrily at Sakura who just smiled sweetly with her hands behind her back.

"I can take a hint Sakura. Alright, today we have to report to Hokage-sama's office." he said casually.

"Then wouldn't Granny Tsunade be expecting us earlier?" asked Naruto with an inquisitive voice.

"Maybe."

_'Kakashi-sensei you slacker.'_ thought Sakura.

_**"Hell yeah! if Tsunade-sensei gets mad at us because of him, he is going down!"**_

_'Keep your temper inner personna. Tsunade-sensei isn't like that.'_

_**"Good point."**_

"Well, shall we get going?" asked Sakura timidly.

"Yeah."

---

"There is something I have to ask you all to do." began Tsunade. Once former team 7 had reported to the office, Tsunade began speaking seriously. Yes, former team 7. Sakura and Naruto had upgraded to Chuunin level a year after Sasuke became a missing nin. Sakura had progressed alot in medical ninjutsus and was now equal with Tsunade on that level. She had inherited greatly of Tsunade's strength and had improved incredibly in her battle skills. Naruto had continued his training with Jiraiya and was also much stronger than before.

"Well, what is it?" a very excited Naruto asked.

"Orochimaru will be able to transfer into Sasuke's body soon and we need to stop him from doing that. This is of most importance and failure is something we cannot afford." continued the fifth Hokage.

Sakura's heart sank. She had been training for this day, but it came too soon! She couldn't do it yet!

_**"Sasuke-kun needs us right now more than he will when you ARE ready! By then it will be too late!"**_

_'I know... but if I can't bring him back now, it won't make much of a difference.'_

_**"Well just try your best outer personna! You can do it!"**_

_'Okay...'_

"Sakura?" asked a concerned Tsunade.

"Hmm?" she asked back, withdrawing from her conversation with Inner Sakura.

"Are you going to be alright with this mission?"

"Yeah, I think so." she answered.

"If you're not, I can take you off the mission and ask someone else to fill in for you."

"No! I'll be fine! I'm not going to run away." she answered immediately.

_'After all, Sasuke-kun used to be my teammate and I know him better than the person who would take my place.'_

_**"Yeah! We probably know more about him than Naruto does!"**_

With that, Naruto and Kakashi walked out of the door, followed by Sakura.

---

The next day, the three Konoha ninjas met at the gates of their home village. They were packed for the long trip to Orochimaru's hide out.

"Are we all ready to go?" asked Kakashi.

"Yup." answered both Naruto and Sakura.

Kakashi nodded and they jumped into the trees, running forwards at an extreme speed towards the boundary of their country to enter Sound territory.

_'And when we get there, I'll face the one I've been training so hard to bring back home.'_

OMG! Time to get Sasuke back! Yippeee!!!

TomoenaRayelle


	2. Chapter 2: Cold Eyes

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. (though if I did Naruto would be hotter)**

"Is that...?" whispered naruto.

"Orochimaru's hideout." hissed Sakura.

They were standing on a thick branch of one of the many trees surrounding Orochimaru's hideout.

_'Sasuke is in that place...'_

_**"Yeah, what about it? Come on Shannaro! Go in there, kick snake dude's ass and get Sasuke-kun back home!"**_

_'But inner personna... what if Sasuke doesn't want to come back? What if he...'_

_**"Says you're annoying and that he doesn't want to see you again?"**_

_'Yeah...'_

_**"Who cares? Words are words Shannaro! We don't care, it's a mission and we must complete it!"**_

_'You're right! My feelings shouldn't get in the way! Thanks Inner personna. I don't know what I'd be without you!'_

_**"Probably dead..."**_

_'What?'_

_**"I said nothing."**_

"Let's go already! For all we know he could be doing the transfer right now!" urged Sakura.

Kakashi lifted an eyebrow at her. _She's motivated... just a few seconds ago she was doubting herself. _

"Sakura-chan has a point Kakashi-sensei." added Naruto.

"I know, but we can't just waltz in there. We'd get killed!" said Kakashi.

_'Why didn't I think of that?'_

_**"Cause you're too obsessed with Sasuke-kun, Shannaro."**_

_'Shaddup.'_

Sakura sighed. She turned to her teammates and Kakashi began to form a plan.

---

Sasuke leaned his back on the wall. To his right was Orochimaru sitting down on his usual chair, giving orders to a couple sound ninjas infront of him. They turned and walked out of the big wooden doors.

"Sasuke-kun."

"Hn?"

"We have guests outside. Would you like to greet them?"

"Sure."

Sasuke turned and left the dark room.

---

"I feel a chakra coming closer." said Kakashi.

"I do too." added Sakura.

"Damn. We don't have time to finish the plan." sighed Naruto.

_**"Bring it on! Throw anything you want at us, we'll send it back to the return address!"**_

_'I hope there aren't too many...'_

_**"Oh come on! You're not as weak as the old Sakura! These people are nothing!"**_

_'You're right... I'm stronger now!'_

_**"Then kick ass girl!"**_

Sakura was more sure of herself. She felt stronger and confident in her own abilities. However, whatever she felt in that instant melted away when she saw the opponent she had to fight.

_**"I wasn't expecting that..."**_

_'I know what you mean.'_

Naruto grew angry and Kakashi stared in disbelief.

Sasuke's eyes grew slightly wider when he saw his former teammates. Sakura noticed how Sasuke had changed over three years. He had grown much taller and his eyes that had once made Sakura melt with one gaze had turned cold and shallow. Still, one had to admit that he wasn't ugly. To the contrary, he was _hot_. He was wearing simple black shorts with a simple black t-shirt. Sakura's eyes trailed up to his bare forehead where she had always remembered a Konoha head protector.

_**"Holy Lord is he every hot!"**_

_'But he isn't part of Konoha anymore.'_

_**"Who cares!"**_

_'I do, baka!'_

Sasuke also examined his former friends. Naruto wasn't wearing the dorky orange suit he usually wore back when he was twelve. He had a black shirt on with dark blue pants. His eyes were still as blue but his face wasn't as round as it was three years ago. He had matured. When he got around to compare the old Sakura with the new one, he nearly gasped in aww. The fifteen year-old Sakura was taller and more feminine (ahem). She still wore the same symbol on her clothes, but her once red dress was now dark blue and shorter. The dark green shorts she wore before were now longer and white. Her pink hair was still short and held back by her head protector. She looked much better than she had before and Sasuke had to admit she looked great. His mind didn't concentrate long on the former team 7.

"Why did you come here?" he asked uncaringly.

Sakura cringed at his cold tone. It was so much colder than three years ago.

"To bring you back to Konoha, no duh!" shouted Naruto.

Sasuke rolled his eyes. _He's still so loud. _He took out three kunai and held them between his fingers, pointing them at Naruto.

"Good luck, baka."

It's true, I made Naruto hot in this story! I hope I don't spend too much time describing characters. This makes a story boring. Anyway, tell

me if you think so!

TomoenaRayelle


	3. Chapter 3: Clash of Ninjas

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Well, not until I put my plan into action.**

Orochimaru stared blankly at the door as it opened and revealed Kabuto. He bowed deeply and Orochimaru turned to him, as if just noticing his presence.

"Kabuto-kun. Do you feel an abnormal chakra?"

"Yes Orochimaru-sama."

"I want you to find the one with that chakra and bring him or her to me."

"Yes Orochimaru-sama. Is it among the people Sasuke-kun went to greet?"

"Yeah."

Kabuto pushed up his glasses and walked out. Orochimaru grinned at nothing in particular. _That chakra is amazing. Whoever it belongs to must be strong._

---

Sasuke tossed the kunai at Naruto who avoided it easily.

"Come on Sasuke! Do better than that!"

"Back when you were twelve just that would probably kill you."

Naruto frowned and charged at Sasuke. He formed a seal with his hands and dozens of himself appeared. They all charged at Sasuke with each a kunai in hand. Sasuke knocked each of them off so fast the human eye could not see a thing. What he didn't notice is that one of the clones in particular attached an explosive seal to his kunai and it exploded right as the tip hit Sasuke's weapon. He recovered from the blow and upper kicked Naruto in the chin, sending him flying high. Sasuke lunged at the other two Konoha shinobi, taunting them to attack. Kakashi was the first to accept the silent challenge.

Sakura stood frozen, watching the others fight. As soon as Naruto hit the ground, she quickly tended to his wounds. She pulled him out of danger's way and leaned him on a tree.

_**"What's with him? The Naruto I know wouldn't be finished with just one kick!"**_

_'I think there was a trick to Sasuke-kun's kick.'_

_**"What kind of trick?"**_

_'Maybe some kind of chakra that affected his body in different ways.'_

_**"Like poison?"**_

_'Not quite.'_

Kakashi crouched low and spun around, bringing a swift kick intended for Sasuke's ankles. Sasuke jumped up and avoided it, but didn't see Kakashi's other leg coming right up for him. He flew back several meters but caught himself before landing flat on his back.

Sakura gasped when Sasuke recieved another blow to his side from her sensei. She cringed when she realized she was worried for her enemy.

_'Damn it! I should be worrying for Kakashi-sensei!'_

_**"But you love Sasuke-kun."**_

_'A ninja shouldn't show emotion during a mission!'_

Sasuke vanished and reappeared behind Kakashi, delivering quite a blow on his back. Kakashi hit the ground hard. He couldn't get back up. Sakura cried out and flung a kunai in Sasuke's direction. Sasuke jumped back to avoid it and Sakura used that distance to try to get her sensei out of danger. She dashed towards him and pulled his arm over her shoulder. She carried him to where Naruto was and she set him down beside the unconscious kyuubi kid. A green chakra surrounded her hands and she quickly healed most of his wounds. Sasuke looked in amazement as Sakura healed her fallen teammates.

"Who trained you?" he asked out of the blue.

Startled, Sakura answered coldly, "Tsunade-sama."

Sasuke nodded and out of curiosity threw a kunai directly at her. Noticing it, she quickly punched the earth under her, causing bits of hard ground to fly up infront of her. As if predicted, a chunk of hardened earth stopped the kunai mere inches from her face. She backed away from kakashi and Naruto to draw the fight away from them.

"You're still too weak to fight me, Sakura."

"I've changed more than you think, Sasuke." she hissed.

"What happened to the _kun_?" he inquired.

"You don't deserve it anymore."

_**"Way to go Shannaro! Give him a piece of your mind!"**_

A sly smile came across his face.

"You _have_ changed."

"What else did you think?"

She lunged at him and threw seven shurikens and three kunai. Sasuke quickly activated his Sharingan and managed to avoid each attack. In the meantime, Sakura quickly dashed around him and filled her fist with chakra, hitting him hard right between the shoulder blades. Shocked, Sasuke fell forwards but caught himself before he hit ground. He spun on his hands and kicked Sakura in the stomach, sending her skidding backwards. He didn't fuse chakra into his foot so the kick was rather effectless. Sakura dug her feet into the ground and dashed forwards. Sasuke prepared himself for impact, but when Sakura was within a two feet distance, she vanished. Her searched around himself but he couldn't find her.

He felt an earthquake beneath his feet but didn't move fast enough. The grouns under him collapsed, making him drop into a deep crater. Sakura jumped out of the giant hole and examined her handiwork.

_**"Way to go Shannaro!"**_

_'I might have hurt Sasuke-kun!'_

_**"THE Uchiha Sasuke wouldn't be finished with that!"**_

_'Are you calling me weak?'_

_**"I said nothing."**_

_'You'd better hope so.'_

_**"... tee hee?"**_

_'Baka.'_

Sakura peered into the hole and looked at the pile of dirt Sasuke was piled under. She saw a hand pierce the layer of soil, eventually followed my an arm, then followed by Sasuke himself. A feeling of relief siezed her, but when she saw the murderous intent in his eyes, the relief was replaced by fear.

Sasuke pulled himself from the pile of dirt and threw four kunai at the wall of the crater in a vertical straight line with three feet of distance between each. He jumped up and used those as steps to climb out of the crater. Once he jumped out, he came face to face with Sakura. His eyes seemed to have some warmth at that instant. She blushed at how close she was to him but pulled away. Sasuke seemed to snap out of a trance and grabbed two kunai. Sakura did the same and they both threw theirs at the same time, each of them aiming for the other.

Suddenly there was a puff of smoke and the sound of kunais clashing together.

An Abnormal chakra, eh? Hmm... what is Orochimaru planning?

Don't ask me cause I don't know until I actually write the story. Stay tuned!

TomoenaRayelle


	4. Chapter 4: The New Sasuke

**Disclaimer: Well... my plan failed. I wont be owning Naruto any time soon**.

The smoke cleared and there stood Kabuto, kunai in hand. He had deflected each one of the kunai Sakura and Sasuke had thrown at eachother. He pushed up his glasses and looked at Sasuke.

"Sorry Sasuke-kun, but Orochimaru-sama asked me to intervene." he said calmly.

"What does he want now?" Sasuke asked dully.

Kabuto turned to Sakura. Her chakra was the one Orochimaru wanted.

"Sakura-chan, please come with me." he said.

Sakura lifted an eyebrow.

_**"Does he think we'll just calmly walk with him? Four eyes, you are going DOWN!"**_

"What makes you think I'll follow?" she hissed.

"I thought you'd say something like that." he spoke gently.

Kabuto disappeared and reappeared behind Sakura. He filled his hand with chakra and hit down hard on her shoulder's pressure point. Sakura fought to keep her eyes open, but finally collapsed to the ground, unconscious.

"Why does Orochimaru want Sakura?" asked Sasuke.

"He has plans for her as well as for you." he said casually.

Sasuke nodded and Kabuto picked up Sakura. They both headed back down to the hideout.

"What about the other Konoha ninjas?" pointed out Sasuke.

"Right, please hold on to Sakura."

Kabuto handed Sakura's motionless body to Sasuke, who held her bridal style. Kabuto took out a letter and placed it at Kakashi's feet. They walked down the steps and back underground to the place they were both accustomed to.

---

Kakashi woke up several hours later with a throbbing headache. He looked around him and spotted unconscious Naruto leaned on the tree beside him. As he pushed himself up off the ground, he heard a silent rustling. His foot had crushed something made of paper. Something looking like a letter. Something with... his name on it. He opened up the envelope and scowled as he read it's content.

_Hatake Kakashi,_

_If you are reading this, then you'll soon find out that we have left the hideout._

_We took Sakura-chan with us. Orochimaru has some plans for her. You can _

_come and try to find us, I won't stop you. But, what you may see might be_

_more than you can take._

_-Kabuto_

Kakashi crumpled the paper and tossed it over his shoulder. It hit Naruto in the forehead and he slowly opened his eyes. He blinked, remembering what happened before he blacked-out. He looked around and the first thing that he noticed was that Sakura was out of his sight. He jumped up and he nearly fell over.

"Kakashi-sensei! Where's Sakura-chan?!"

Kakashi clenched his fist and turned to Naruto. He immediately understood when he saw the look in his sensei's visible eye. Sorrow.

"Is she... alright?" he asked more calmly.

"I don't know Naruto."

Naruto carefully opened and flattened the crumpled paper at his feet. His eyes scanned the paper quickly.

"What does he mean by _'what you may see might be more than you can take'_ ?" he asked after reading the last phrase.

"I can't tell you that. I have no clue. Whatever he means, I think we should prepare ourselves for it."

---

Sakura woke up in a dark room. She was on a small bed under thin covers, which she was thankful for because she was feeling rather warm. She sat up painfully but succeeding in lifting her legs over the side of the bed. As she tried to stand up, a shock of pain jolted down her neck and threw her spine. She fell forwards and braced herself for the inevitable impact with the cold, hard ground. But, before she could hit the stone floor, strong arms caught her. She looked up to see none other than her first love, staring down at her with his dark eyes. She blushed furiously and pulled away, falling on her butt. Sasuke laughed slightly and offered her his hand. She took it and he pulled her up.

"You okay?" he asked.

"Umm... yeah." she answered, moving her arms behind her back like she normally did.

Sasuke nodded and helped her sit back on her bed.

"W-what w-was that? I-It just... hurt." she stuttered, wondering why she suddenly collapsed.

"The seal."

"What seal?"

"The cursed seal. You got one while you were unconscious." he answered casually.

Sakura's eyes widened as her brain registered what information she just heard. A flashback of the day Sasuke got his zoomed in her thoughts. She was actually thankful it was while she slept so that she didn't feel too much pain.

"That explains the fever." he continued, gently putting his hand on her forehead to check her temperature.

She blushed again.

_'Was he there the whole time?'_

_**"Heck yeah! He loves us!"**_

_'Maybe Orochimaru told him to look after me...'_

_**"No, no, no and NO! Why can't you convince yourself that he may actually like us?"**_

_'Because he never actually talked to me much back in Konoha.'_

_**"Whatever."**_

"Sasuke...kun." she whispered. She turned away and looked at the ground.

_'Damn! Why must he finally worry about me when HE'S the bad guy?'_

_**"Bad guys are hot. That's why."**_

_'And where did you find that out?'_

_**"Did you see his brother? Holy cow man, I thought I'd drown in my own drool!"**_

_'You... are... one sick person.'_

Oh wow! Saku's got the cursed seal! Inner Saku's so right, Itachi is H0T!

TomoenaRayelle


	5. Chapter 5: Alone

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto, do I have to keep hurting myself by admitting it?!**

"WHAT?!"

Shizune was in the hall outside of the Hokage's door and she was nearly blown away by the angered voice of none other than the Hokage. She shyly opened the door and tiptoed behind and around the two Konoha ninjas that her anger was directed to. She made her way behind Tsunade and tried not to laugh when she saw how Tsunade was practically standing on her chair.

"What is it Tsunade-sama?" asked Shizune.

Tsunade turned around, still pointing accusingly at Kakashi and Naruto.

"These two men let Orochimaru take Sakura!" she yelled.

Shizune's eyes widened in shock. Tsunade breathed in and exhaled, slowly sitting down calmly behind her desk. She rested her elbows on her desk and placed her chin on her hands, mumbling something about how this day could get any worse. Kakashi and Naruto hung their head low, looking down at the floor in shame. Tsunade sighed and looked back up.

"Well, we'll send Kurenai's team, Gai's team, Asuma's team, and what's left of Kakashi's team to go get her back." she spoke calmly.

"But Tsunade-sama, shouldn't we send ANBU, or atleast chuunins?" asked Shizune.

"We don't have much of a choice. Everyone else are either on a mission or required to defend the village." answered the Hokage.

Naruto looked up and nodded. Tsunade nearly gasped when she saw the look in his eyes. They were dull. The hyper-active teenager she once knew had completely vanished. He was serious. _Dead_ serious.

"I'll go get them." he said coldly and walked out of the room.

Kakashi turned his head and stared at the door. He shook his head sadly and also turned to follow him. Tsunade was left dumbstruck. _She means alot to Naruto. If anything happens to her-... already with the loss of Sasuke... oh I'm so sorry for you Naruto._

---

Sasuke brought down a plate of bread and some water, which they both ate silently. Sakura didn't know what to think. Should she hate Sasuke for joining Orochimaru? She couldn't bring herself to hating him. What confused her the most was why he was so much more friendly with her now when she was something like his prisoner than when they were teammates in Konoha. He was finally talking to her, but she couldn't enjoy that fact because they were now ennemies.

_**"Just drop it Shannaro."**_

_'And drop Konoha at the same time? No thank-you Inner personna!'_

_**"I didn't mean it that way!"**_

_'Than what DID you mean?'_

_**"Stop tearing yourself in two with these questions!"**_

_'Than you want me to act all friendly with him when he's my enemy?'_

_**"Oh... now I see what you mean."**_

_'You may be the inner me, but you don't think one bit like me.'_

_**"Of course. I'm just the one that says what you fear to say."**_

_'And why do I need you then?'_

_**"Oh, don't say that! We're friends right?"**_

_'I don't know anymore.'_

_**"Shannaro..."**_

Sakura immediately regretted what she said.

_'Oh my gosh, Inner personna I'm so sorry!'_

There was no answer inside her mind. She mentally slapped herself for saying something so heartless like that.

"I'm tired." said Sakura blankly.

"Alright. I'll leave you alone then." answered Sasuke.

He turned and brought the platter with him. As soon as he shut the door, Sakura let a tear fall, then two, then a shower of them cascaded down her face. She threw herself face-first on the bed and sobbed in the pillow. She was alone. On her own in a situation that she needed someone to talk to the most. The words rung in her head. _Alone... I'm all alone._

Then a memory hit her. Around four years ago, Naruto had came up to her when she was in an angry mood after seeing Ino with Sasuke. He greeted her happily but she ignored it. She had yelled at him and told him to leave her alone. Now she regretted it and wished she could take it back. She let more tears soak her pillow.

_'I wish I could take it ALL back.'_

---

Sasuke walked down the poorly lit hall and turned when he reached the room that they used as a kitchen. He pushed open the door and placed the platter on the stone counter. He sighed to himself and walked out and towards his room. He crashed on his bed and looked up blankly at the ceiling. The image of Sakura laying peacefully on her bed nibbled at his thoughts. He rolled his eyes and turned to his side. The image still attacked him, only this time the image was clearer. He shook his head and sat up.

"Damn it!"

He threw his pillow at the wall and it simply fell back on the floor. He dug his hands into his hair as if stressed and sighed. _Why can't I stop thinking about her? What's with me?!_

There was a faint knock on the door.

"Come in."

Kabuto pushed the door slightly and looked around. He lifted his eyebrow at the pillow lying on the floor on the other side of the room.

"What did the pillow do to you?" Kabuto asked calmly.

"Nothing. What do you have to say?" Sasuke snapped.

"Orochimaru-sama wishes to see you."

"Can it wait?"

"No."

"Fine."

---

Naruto finished gathering all of the ninjas Tsunade had mentioned. He counted heads to make sure everyone was there.

"Sasuke, now Sakura? Your team is really messed up, Naruto." said Ino.

"Sakura-chan was abducted, it's different." snapped Lee.

"But why would Orochimaru want Sakura?" asked Neji.

"Well, she's a real good healer and she has just as much strength as Hokage-sama." TenTen answered.

Naruto stayed silent and stared threw the gates of Konoha. Hinata shyly came up behind him and tapped his shoulder. Naruto turned to her but she took a step back when she saw the bluntness in Naruto's eyes.

"What is it Hinata?" he asked blankly.

"N-Naruto-kun... are you alright? You s-seem a little..." she studdered.

"Mean?" Naruto finished her sentence.

Hinata shook her head furiously and looked at him sadly.

"Different! Not mean!" she yelled, getting attention from everyone.

Naruto looked down, then back to the forest.

"I'm sorry Hinata-chan." he said, showing slight emotion for the first time in hours.

Hinata put her hand on his shoulder and smiled at him, making him feel only slightly better.

"Don't worry Naruto-kun, we'll get Sakura-chan back." she promised.

Oooh Noo! Inner Saku is gone!

Don't promise something you aren't sure you can do Hinata.

Review!

TomoenaRayelle


	6. Chapter 6: A Sly Smile

**Disclaimer: No ones asked me so far, but to be sure: I do NOT own Naruto.**

Sasuke stopped in the middle of the hallway infront of big double doors. This was the way into Orochimaru's chamber.

"Come in." called a monotone voice.

Sasuke pushed open the heavy doors and walked into the poorly lit room. His eyes took a while to adjust, but after a few seconds he could make out the figure sitting in a chair.

"Ah, Sasuke-kun, I'm glad you came." he greeted, smiling sickly.

"Hn." was the only response that came from Sasuke.

"Well, you may be wondering why I asked Kabuto to abduct the girl, right?" Orochimaru continued, still grinning.

"I guess."

"You have probably witnessed Sakura-chan's strength and healing abilities."

Sasuke didn't reply, but Orochimaru knew that he was listening.

"Sakura-chan will be your partner. She will come to your aid when needed. Much like Kabuto serves me." explained Orochimaru.

"What makes you think she'll do what you say?" retorqued Sasuke.

"Well... if she doesn't, she will be punished."

Sasuke lifted an eyebrow and felt somewhat worried.

"Punished?"

"You've most definetly felt it before. The stinging pain of the cursed seal." Orochimaru snickered.

Sasuke cringed and felt himself grow hot with rage. He was at once angry and worried. He was worried Sakura wouldn't take the seal's pain as well as he did. He was worried that it would be too much for her and...

_'Holy damn what's wrong with me?! Why the hell am I thinking so much of her?'_

"Hn." ws all he could mutter, covering up the turmoil of his thoughts. He turned and walked out, shutting the door behind him rather loudly.

---

A couple hours later, Sakura woke up with the infamous **_'headache from hell'_**, as Inner Sakura always used called it.

_'Oh Inner... I'm so sorry.'_

She stood up, struggling to keep her balance. She scowled as she saw what she looked like. Her once dark blue clothes were ripped and stained with red in certain places. A huge gash on her side had torn the material, exposing her olive skin. She sighed and a bundle of cloth on the foot of her bed caught her eye. She lifted it up and two pieces of clothes unfolded. They turned out to be a black, long-sleeve shirt and matching short shorts.

_'Geez! Short shorts? What does Orochimaru think I am? A private fashion model?'_

She examined the pitch black clothes again and sighed in defeat.

_'Well, I can't go around in bloody clothes either.'_

Slipping off her old clothes, she threw them on the bed behind her. She kept on her undergarments, since she figured she wouldn't be getting any clean ones anyway. She pulled the rather short shorts on and gasped when she realized it was a perfect fit. She tossed the sweater over her head and pulled it down until the bottom reached just above her belly button. She was furious when she found that the shirt was a belly shirt.

"The hell?! Why are these clothes so damn reveiling?!" she yelled out-loud.

"Sorry about that. I just got the measures, Orochimaru designed them." came a casual voice.

Sakura spun around and felt her cheeks flush. There sat Sasuke, in the corner, looking amused.

_'Holy Hell! Sasuke-kun just saw me in underwear and a bra!'_

_**"Rather intriguing, isn't it?"**_

_'Oh sure! A boy seeing me in... wait a minute... Inner?'_

_**"The one and only."**_

_'I missed you so much!'_

_**"I was never gone..."**_

_'You know what I mean.'_

_**"Hehe... now back to business... why would he just sit there, not say a word, and watch you change?"**_

_'I don't know, you tell me.'_

_**"Alright. HE DIGS US!"**_

_'Dude... it's probably all a bizarre accident. He could have been on shift and felt too embarassed to speak up before I got changed.'_

_**"Sure, that's why he has a nice little smile plastered on his face. Good thinking Outer."**_

_'... I swear... if it wasn't for the fact that I missed you, I would be blasting you to high hell.'_

Inner Sakura was right. There was a very odd smile on Sasuke's face. A _satisfied_ smile. Sakura blinked once, then twice as the information processed in her mind.

"Sasuke-kun... my clothes... eep." she whispered, crossing her arms over her chest.

The sudden movement got a chuckle from Sasuke. Suddenly, he vanished. Sakura frantically searched the room, but froze as she felt a warm breath hear her neck.

"Behind you Sakura." he said playfully.

"I could guess that much." she muttered, more amazed than annoyed.

A smile creeped up both their faces.

Ooooh! Sasu/Saku moment? Hooray! Inner Sakura's back!

Leave a comment if you have ideas!

TomoenaRayelle


	7. Chapter 7: Some Therapy and Confusion

**Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto. If you think I do, consult a doctor immediately.**

Naruto sped up until he was several hundred meters away from the rest of the group. Hinata joined him up front. They kept leaping from branch to branch. Naruto was clearly absent-minded. Hinata could tell by his dull eyes that he was deep in thought. It broke her heart to see Naruto like this, so she tried to cheer him up.

"N-Naruto-kun... y-you shouldn't be too hard on yourself... I-I'm sure Sakura-chan is alright." she said, studdering as she usually did.

Naruto seemed to have heard her, since he turned his head towards her.

"I know I shouldn't blame myself Hinata-chan, but I still feel responsible for all of it." he answered sadly.

There was a moment of silence between the two. After a while, Hinata decided to speak up to get he rout of the awkward position she was in.

"Do you feel bad for yourself or for Sakura-chan?" she asked sternly.

"H-Hinata-chan? You just said a full sentence without studdering! Are you feeling okay?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"Do not avoid the question Naruto-kun." she ordered.

Naruto was shocked. Never had Hinata seemed so bold since the time she faced Neji during the Chuunin exams. Hinata herself was surprised, but she used this burst of confidence to try to knock somw sense into Naruto.

"Listen, Naruto-kun. My father has had many talks with me about feeling regretfull or shameful. I know what I'm talking about and I want to know what really is behind the feeling you have." she explained softly.

"Right... but I don't understand your question. Of course I feel bad for Sakura-chan!" he countered.

"Let me rephrase this. Are you sad that Orochimaru now has Sakura-chan prisoner, or are you mad that you couldn't protect her."

"Well... abit of both I guess."

"Which do you feel more intensily?" she inquired.

"I guess... I think I'm mad at myself for not protecting her."

"Then you must get rid of that feeling."

"How?"

"You have to forgive yourself. No human is perfect and definetly no human can do everything."

"You're right Hinata-chan... thanks."

---

Sasuke leaned forwards and brought his hand to hers from behind her. He lifted both of their hands and rested them on Sakura's left shoulder, bringing her closer to him.

**_"Oh my gosh! He is totally ours!"_**

_'Oh please. He could be trying to bribe us into doing something for him.'_

_**"Really then? Wll then I guess I can't refuse him, can I? Rawr."**_

_'You sick-minded pervert! I meant he might be trying to persuade us to work for almighty-snake-loser himself!'_

_**"... "**_

_'Besides, this is so out of character for Sasuke-kun! Before, he would barely look at me, and now...'_

_**"... He's practically groping you."**_

_'Right...'_

Sakura was brought out of her thoughts when Sasuke leaned closer to her ear.

"You know, I find these clothes suit you alot better than those other ones." he whispered, again with a hint of playfullness in his voice.

Sakura pulled away and turned around to face him. She smiled sweetly, but then frowned and pushed him back so that he fell down. She walked away to the other corner of the room and leaned her back against the wall. He looked at her, confused, and she looked back, angry.

"What was that for?" he asked.

"I don't get you Sasuke!" she yelled back.

"What don't you get?"

"Everything! I don't know why you said "thank-you" and left, I don't know why I'm here and I sure as hell don't know why you seem so interested in me, now of all times!" she blurted out, nearing tears now.

Sasuke got up and brushed himself off. His eyes softened as he saw Sakura crouch down sob in her arms.

"I'm sorry, Sakura. I didn't think it would hurt you so much." he said in a soft tone.

Sakura sniffed and wiped her eyes. She looked back up at him with watery eyes.

"Then why are you so different now? You're so... you've become totally different. I don't see any of the old Sasuke-kun in you." she said in a shaky voice.

"Everyone changes Sakura. Some for the better, others for the worse." he stated.

"Yes... but I don't quite know if I should like the new you." she said, looking down at the floor.

"Should? So you **do** like the new me." he confirmed, with a small smile stretching across his face.

_'Damn! He's seeing right threw me...'_

_**"You're just way to obvious Lover-girl."**_

_'You try doing better. You would probably have thrown yourself at his feet.'_

_**"True. But... I would have made it look good."**_

_'I... hate... you...'_

"Yeah, I guess I kind of do..." she muttered.

"... but?" he asked.

"... but I'm from Konoha and am still loyal to my village. I won't stray off just because of..." she said, trying to convince herself more than the other person in the room.

"Because of what?" Sasuke urged.

"Because of some guy I had a crush on!" she said, a little more loudly than she wanted.

**_"Dude! You don't just have a crush on the guy, you freakin' love him!"_**

_'You stay out of this Inner. I know what i'm doing.'_

**_"What are you doing?"_**

_'You'll see.'_

Oooh. Everyone changes Sakura! Some for the better, some for the worse. Which is the way Sasuke went? Stay tuned and find out!

(OMG, I feel like a T.V. advertiser. COOL!)

TomoenaRayelle


	8. Chapter 8: Inner Sasuke

**Disclaimer: Ask and I will answer... I do NOT own Naruto!**

Sakura dried her wet eyes.

_**"What are you gonna do?"**_

_'I told you, you'll see.'_

_**"Are you even crying for real?"**_

_'Oh yeah. The tears are real, but I'm gonna use that to my advantage.'_

_**"Fine. Don't tell me what you'll do but tell me what the point is."**_

_'If you insist. Maybe, if I choose the right words I'll be able to get some info on snakes-for-brain's plans and if everything goes great, maybe win Sasuke-kun back!'_

_**"Hmm... I must really be having an impact on you Outer, you're getting smart!"**_

_'... right...'_

Sasuke crouched down and put a hand on her shoulder, then he pulled away. Sakura was confused, then it hit her.

_'Orochimaru taught him to read minds!'_

_**"What?!"**_

_'Remember how Orochimaru said what we were thinking three years back?'_

_**"When we went to the Sound village with Naruto and Jiraiya?"**_

_'Yeah!'_

_**"Oh damn! So he's listening to us right now?"**_

_'I think he can only tell if he physically touches somebody.'_

_**"Noooo! I feel like I have no privacy now!"**_

_'You're not the one he saw in underwear.'_

_**"... right! Hehe, I'm so happy I'm not the Outer one!"**_

"Sakura, it won't work. I'm loyal to Orochimaru like you're loyal to Konoha." he said blankly.

Sakura's eyes filled with tears again. Sasuke's eyes widened slightly and a smile came across his face.

"You have a voice inside your head eh?" he asked, amused.

"... umm... yeah." Sakura answered.

"That's weird, Orochimaru often told me about people who have an opposite side of themselves in their mind."

_**"Is that what I am? An opposite side of you inside your head?"**_

Sakura's eyes filled with tears turned to eyes that were practically smiling. Just having a friendly conversation with Sasuke was cheering her up.

"Well... not really opposite. She says everything I wouldn't dare say. And she definetly says it loudly." said Sakura, comically faking a headache.

Sasuke smiled.

_'Oh wow...'_

_**"He's cute when he smiles, eh?"**_

_'It's just the first time I see him smile kindly and not at the extent of Naruto's pain or stupidity, nor the satisfaction of thinking of revenge. It's amazing.'_

_**"You've got a point. It's weird when you come to think of it."**_

Sasuke helped Sakura up and stuck his hands in his pockets, as usual.

"She's definetly got quite a character." he pointed out.

Sakura couldn't help it anymore, she let out a slight giggle. She didn't notice the thread of thin wire that connected her hand to his. In other words, Sasuke was in indirect physical contact with her, permitting him to read her mind.

_**"Okay quit laughing! I may have character but I use it perfectly!"**_

_'To other people's expense?'_

_**"Exactly! Back to the point, you shouldn't be off guard around Sasuke-kun."**_

_'He doesn't want to hurt me though...'_

_**"He's Orochimaru's apprentice! He can fake anything!"**_

_'It's just so hard to think someone like Sasuke-kun would do something so bad...'_

_**"I know..."**_

Sasuke cut the wire. He didn't really know why he even connected it in the first place.

"Well Sakura, it's getting late and you should probably rest up. I'll see you tomorrow." said Sasuke as he turned to leave.

"Alright, see you later Sasuke-kun."

---

Sasuke crashed on his bed face first. He frowned sadly.

_'She really trusts me. Only the Inner Sakura has doubts.'_

_**"Yeah Yeah Yeah. Don't worry, she'll come around."**_

_'What are you doing here? I thought I sent you away last week!'_

_**"You can't escape an Inner Persona, Sasuke."**_

_'Why am I cursed with you? What's the purpose of having an inner self anyway?'_

_**"I'm here so that you don't lose yourself."**_

_'How the hell can I lose myself?'_

_**"I know what you truly feel and I can't be driven by the need for revenge or power."**_

_'What a subtle was to insult me.'_

_**"That's what comes with having an Inner Persona!"**_

_'Who said I wanted one?'_

**_"No one did. Trust me, it's a real blessing! Sakura-chan is probably alive today only thanks to her Inner Persona."_**

_'Why do you call her Sakura-chan, and how would you know that anyway?'_

_**"I... umm... am fond of her Inner Persona."**_

_'...lovely...'_

_**"Right... now for answer number two; Sakura-chan doubts herself alot and would probably not have had the courage to fight back had it not been for her inner self."**_

_'Alright, whatever.'_

Sasuke sighed and locked his hands over one of the three pillows he had on his bed. He turned around, and with a short, frustrated yell threw it hard on the wall.

_**"Something is bugging you, Outer."**_

_'What was your first clue? The pillow or the yell?'_

_**"Cut the sarcasm. I'm serious here, and I know you're stressed cause I feel it too!"**_

_'Then how about you tell me?'_

_**"Orochimaru told you to gain her trust, right?"**_

_'Hn.'_

_**"Now you don't know if you should manipulate her or not."**_

_**"Right... well I vote for going against Orochimaru."**_

_'Are you crazy?! He can make me stronger so I can avenge my family by killing-...'_

**_"Itachi. I know I know. But, ask yourself Sasuke, what will you do afterwards?"_**

Sasuke can read minds oO!!! Amaaazing. Who would have thought Sasuke had an Inner Persona?

Anyhow, leave a comment or two if you have time, that way I know my story is appreciated and I'll update quicker.

TomoenaRayelle


	9. Chapter 9: Forbidden Technique

**Disclaimer: Well... Holds up a sign that reads: I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!!! I think we understand each other now.**

Naruto moved closer to the opening field by jumping to the next tree branch.

"Yo Naruto! Don't get too close to the field, you'll be immediately spotted!" shouted Kiba. Akamaru yipped in agreement.

"There doesn't seem to be any guards. Besides, we're still a long ways away from the entrance to the tunnel." answered Naruto while checking the premises for enemies.

"I don't see any one either." added Neji, Byakugan activated.

"Y-yes, b-but there are traps in the entrance." pointed out Hinata after checking the area with her Byakugan.

"What kind of traps?" asked Shikamaru.

"There are s-several t-types." she answered.

Shikamaru examined his fellow teammates and assumed his thinking position. After about half a minute he stood up straight and turned to Ino.

"Ino, you followed a course on how to disable traps, right?" he asked her.

"Yeah, I know how, but I broke my index finger last week and it hasn't fully healed. One bad twitch and I could blow up." she stated flatly.

"Then how about you mind control one of the other people here. All you really need is to know how, right?" asked Chouji, surprisingly not eating chips.

"That's a great idea Chouji. Anyone care to lend their body to Ino?" inquired Shikamaru.

"Yosh! I'll do it!" announced Lee, waving his right arm in the air.

"No, you can't Lee. With all the bandages around your hand it wouldn't work." said Ino.

"T-then I can d-do it."

All heads whipped around and faced the timid Hinata. Naruto smiled and walked up beside her and put a hand on her shoulder, causing her pale complexion to turn a little more pink than normal.

"I'm sure Hinata-chan would do fine." he said reassuringly.

Hinata smiled and straightened up.

"Hai!"

Kiba glared at Naruto in a "Hands off" sort of way, but Naruto ignored him.

---

Orochimaru stood up and walked to the back of the room and looked down at some books on one of his tables. He flipped the page and quickly read the writing. His lips curved upwards at the ends, forming a smile that sends shivers down one's spine.

"Orochimaru-sama, Sasuke-kun has gained much of Sakura-chan's trust." announced Kabuto from the other side of the room.

"Excellent. When do you think would be a good time to perform the spell?" asked Orochimaru.

"In three days would be best. Sakura-chan will have just enough energy to survive it."

"Good. Is Sasuke-kun aware of anything?"

"No. He only knows he must gain her confidence. I'm guessing he knows he has to somehow turn on her."

The spine shivering smile turned to a broad, blood chilling grin.

"Perfect."

---

Sakura munched on a piece of bread Sasuke had brought her. She didn't mind only having bread, because it seemed that was the only thing they had in the hideout besides water. Sasuke just sat beside her, staring at the wall. Sakura swallowed and sighed.

"You don't have to stay here while I eat Sasuke-kun." she said with a small smile.

"Nah, it's fine." he replied.

Sakura's eyes dimmed and she stared at the floor.

"What's going to happen to me?" asked Sakura with a little voice.

"What do you mean?" asked Sasuke bluntly, still staring at the wall infront of him.

"You know what I mean. I'm not on vacation here. Orochimaru wants to use me." she stated bluntly, keeping her voice steady and level.

Sasuke stayed quiet and Sakura used his non-response to fill the quiet space.

"Listen, Sasuke-kun. I know something bad is going to happen to me and you don't have to hide it. I'm not just here because Orochimaru felt like kidnapping people, nor to keep you or anyone else company."

"What makes you think we want to use you to our advantage?" asked Sasuke.

"I've improved while you were gone. I have more strength than Tsunade-sensei and can heal wounds. I know that Orochimaru is aware of that and wants to use it."

"Probably."

**_"Probably?! The nerve of that guy! Acting like he know nothing about it."_**

_'He does know nothing about it.'_

_**"Eh?"**_

_'Revealing the full plan to everyone on your team could endanger a mission. It's basic.'_

_**"Right... I slept during strategy class... hehe."**_

_'Baka.'_

"Well, I know that whatever happens, it also involves me." said Sasuke out of the blue.

Sakura smiled and shifted her gaze up to the ceiling.

"So I won't be alone." she whispered to herself.

---

"Tsunade-sama!" called Shizune.

"What? What is it now?" asked Tsunade, obviously exhausted.

"We have a theory on what Orochimaru plans to do with Sakura-san." she announced with a hint of relief in her voice.

"Please, do tell!" insisted the Hokage.

Shizune opened a scroll and set it down on Tsunade's desk. She gasped as she read the writing on the parchment.

"But this is a forbidden jutsu!" Tsunade shouted. "Heck, it's probably the hardest jutsu in the book too!"

"So you know how this jutsu works? I'm not as informed. What is it?" asked Shizune.

Tsunade sighed and turned around, looking out the window.

---

"The Mind Corruption jutsu mixed with a little Body Control. This is called the Total Control jutsu. Extremely complicated spell that can turn disastrous if badly performed. That's part of why it's forbidden, but if you ask me, people are just afraid of the aftermath." Orochimaru explained to Kabuto.

Kabuto pushed up his glasses with two fingers and smiled slyly.

"And what would the aftermath be, Orochimaru-sama?" asked Kabuto.

Orochimaru smiled.

"A perfect killing machine."

OMG! What is gonna happen to Sakura? Oh well, you'll see! I'm planning on adding another character into my story, so be sure to stay tuned!

TomoenaRayelle


	10. Chapter 10: Never Alone

**Disclaimer: In an alternate universe I probably do, but here I don't. Me no owns Naruto.**

"Oh wow." was all that escaped Sakura's lips as she saw the "Back-yard" of the hideout.

Sasuke had taken Sakura through a tunnel that linked to a rather large mountain. In the center of the mountain, there was a hole with no ceiling that had both running water and grass. A giant willow made the football field-sized meadow look less plain. Vines crawled up the sides of the giant crater and circled a hole where a waterfall emptied it's contents into the small river below.

"I train here." said Sasuke, pointing towards a little corner where there was wooden posts and targets stuck onto the rock wall.

"This is amazing! I've only dreamed of being in a place like this!" exclaimed Sakura, running up to the weeping willow tree.

It's long string-like branches were nearly touching the ground all around except for one door-sized entrance. Sakura sat in it's shade and stared in amazement at the clear stream.

"Hn. I guess it's a nice place." admitted Sasuke.

"Nice? It's amazing! Most painters would kill just to get a view like this! Aw man... I wish I had my sketch book." sighed Sakura.

"You draw?"

"Yeah. I mostly draw people but I love to draw scenes."

"Would you like it if I got your sketchbook?"

"All the way in Konoha? That's a long ways away..."

"Not really. I'll get it tomorrow."

"Wow... Thank-you Sasuke-kun."

_**"That's my Sasuke-kun!"**_

_'You were the one that was worried he's double-cross us.'_

**_"I was. Was is in the past tense, unless I slept through that class too..."_**

_'I'm ignoring you now.'_

Sakura leaned her head against the tree and laughed to herself.

"Do you often stare off into space like that?" asked Sasuke. Sakura jumped. Sasuke had walked up to the tree and sat down beside her while she was talking to Inner Sakura.

"Umm... well... kinda. Does it show that much?" she asked back.

"I noticed, but somebody else may not have. Is it because of Inner Sakura?"

"Yeah. I just sometimes talk with her and forget what I was doing or entirely shut out the rest of the world."

"Hn. Happens to me often."

"Really?"

"Yeah. Inner me bugs me alot."

"Oh come on! Now you're just making fun of me."

"No, I'm serious."

"And here I thought I was alone in the world."

Sasuke smiled and inched his hand closer to Sakura's.

"You're never alone."

He took her hand as he said this and she gasped quietly, then laced her fingers with his. She felt a happiness overwhelm her and she smiled. Not a forced smile, but a real smile.

---

A certain someone was watching the teenagers talk. A certain man was listening to their conversations. A certain Uchiha saw their hands touch, and that same man wasn't going to let his chance slip by.

Who knew what damage could be brought to Uchiha Sasuke if one of his enemies were to discover that he had feelings for a certain Haruno Sakura? Itachi sure did.

_'You're so pathetic, little brother. Your guard is down and you are definetly going to regret it.'_

A smile came across Itachi's face.

_'That girl could be useful to the organization. I'm sure Leader-sama will be pleased.'_

_'Little brother, you are never alone.'_

---

Naruto threw a stick into the fire. He was definetly frustrated. After they had formed the plan, it had started raining and Ino caught a cold. Luck was surely not on his side. Hinata began to take care of her and the rest of the group decided to rest up to prepare for the infiltration. Shikamaru figured everyone was tired from the three day journey anyway.

"N-Naruto-kun?" came Hinata's timid voice.

She stood up next to Naruto and he patted the ground next to him, signaling she could sit, so she did.

"Are you f-feeling okay Naruto-kun? Y-you look pale." she asked, putting her hand on his forehead.

"Nah, I'm fine. I'm just mad we have to wait another two days." he said, snapping another twig and tossing the two halves into the fire.

"Well, i-if the weather is good, Ino should b-be okay in a day a-and a half." Hinata studdered, trying to cheer up her crush.

Naruto smiled and looked up at her.

"You know what Hinata-chan? First of all, if anyone's pale, it's you. Second-..."

Naruto stood up and faced her for a second, then wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into a tight embrace, causing her face to turn a brilliant shade of cherry red.

"Thank-you." he whispered.

Hinata hugged back. After a minute and a half, they seperated.

"W-why did you hug m-me Naruto-kun?" she asked, not dissapointed, infact, far from dissapointed, but just to know why.

"You always try to comfort me. It makes me feel more sure of myself. I don't feel alone around you."

"Naruto-kun, you are _never_ alone."

---

While Sakura and Sasuke's hands were touching, sure enough, their minds could connect. Sasuke didn't notice and he wasn't intending to read her mind, but Inner Sasuke could communicate with Inner Sakura.

Inside Sakura's mind:

_**"Yo."**_

_**"Holy Hell! Who are you?"**_

_**"What you can't guess?"**_

Sasuke came into Inner Sakura's view, and she recognized him instantly. Of course, Inner Sasuke had some markings on his forehead, so he looked only slightly different from the original one.

_**"No way! Sasuke had an Inner?"**_

_**"Yeah, what about it?"**_

_**"How did you get here?"**_

_**"The outer us are holding hands, so your mind is open to me."**_

_**"Awesome! I feel almost human. Though, you did forget to knock."**_

_**"Oh, I'm sorry. I'll remember next time."**_

_**"You're way different from the original Sasuke, aren't you?" **_

_**"Does that mean you don't like me?"**_

_**"To the contrary! I like this Sasuke more than the other!"**_

_**"Why thanks! I'll make sure I tell him that."**_

_**"Hehehe. Hooray for Inner torments!"**_

_**"Definetly!"**_

­­­­­­

Sorry! Just had to add Inner Sakura/Inner Sasuke moment. I think I'm the first to do that pairing.

Anyhow, next chapter should come some time this week. Be sure to leave some comments!

TomoenaRayelle


	11. Chapter 11: Abducted

**Disclaimer: I wish, but I cant. I dont own Naruto. Self deception is sweet!**

Sakura hummed softly as she dipped her fingers into the running stream of the hideout's 'backyard'. Sakura called it her little escape paradise. This name had two meanings. It was much better than her room and was the only other place she could go unacompanied except for the bathroom. She could also blast a hole through the wall several times until she could be free to go back home. She decided to wait before she'd do that to see if she could get any information about Orochimaru's plans and maybe win Sasuke back to Konoha.

_**"By the way, I had the most interesting conversation yesterday!"**_

_'With Sasuke-kun's Inner self?'_

_**"Yeah-... wait... how did you know?"**_

_'You won't stop talking about it.'_

_**"Hehe... oops."**_

Sakura sighed and shook her head with a small smile. Inner Sakura's IQ was definetly not the same as the original. Maybe Inners had something that was completely the opposite of their Outers after all..

A breeze caught Sakura's short, cotton candy coloured hair and sent the strands whipping around her face. But something about the breeze wasn't right. Sakura grabbed a kunai and began writing something in the soft dirt before turning around and flinging it into the nearby bush. The action was immediately responded with the incoming of several shuriken. Sakura back-flipped out of the way and crouched down to examine her condition.

_'The wind is blowing south and I have about five kunai and ten shuriken that Sasuke gave me before leaving.'_

_**"Then if we can time our actions just right with a strong gust of wind, we can distract him and attack."**_

_'What could we use as a distraction?'_

_**"Why not some of that sandy dirt by your foot?"**_

_'Alright. You keep an eye on the wind direction.'_

_**"Got it."**_

Sakura discretely grabbed a fist-full of sand and prepared a kunai.

_**"The breeze is picking up. In about three seconds."**_

Sakura lunged.

_**"Two..."**_

She dug her feet into the ground.

_**"One..."**_

She aimed.

_**"Now!"**_

Sakura sprinted off in a barely possible speed and threw the sand into the air. The wind carried it up, around and all over, covering Sakura's every move. When the dust cleared, Sakura vanished. The enemy braced himself for impact from the back, but a hand grabbed his foot. He looked down and saw an olive coloured arm sticking out of the ground and grasping his ankle. Soon, a body came out of the ground and a fist struck him in the chin. Even with this person's abilities, he didn't see it coming.

Sakura wielded two kunai and sent them flying towards the ennemy, but he caught both kunai with merely two fingers. Sakura nearly gasped.

_'I knew he was good... but woah!'_

**_"Hehe. This is the Uchiha Itachi after all."_**

Itachi focused his crimson eyes onto Sakura, and before she realized it, she was flat on the ground face first with her arms held behind her back.

"If you come with me calmly I won't have to hurt you." came Itachi's cold voice.

Sakura struggled to free herself and searched her mind for some way to get out of the mess she was in.

_'Damn! How am I supposed to out-witt an S-class criminal. I'm only chuunin!'_

_**"But we were about to become jounin before the mission."**_

_'Whatever. Big deal. I'm against Sasuke's brother! Uchiha Itachi! Tsunade-sensei couldn't even beat him! I'm just a nobody with a Konoha head protector.'_

_**"Quit saying things like that! It's a real pain! You could atleast try! What would Sasuke-kun think of you?"**_

_'Sasuke-kun...'_

Sakura felt a sudden rush of strength overwhelm her. She ripped her arms out of her ennemy's grasp and kicked him away. She quickly tightened the gloves on her hands and hit down on the ground as hard as possible, causing a decent-sized crater to appear. Itachi got pulled down in the land slide it caused and was burried under two feet of dirt. So Sakura thought...

"You're quite skilled, but it's all futile against me, Haruno."

Those were the last words she heard before she blacked out.

---

Ino quickly performed several hand seals and ended with a triangle shape. She aimed and directed it at Hinata. Ino's body went limp and fell towards the ground. Shikamaru stopped the fall before her face could make contact with the ground. Hinata's eyes had changed and seemed less pale than usual. She turned around and ran in the direction of the entrance. She quickly located the first trap and began twisting, rewiring and removing certain wires and parts. Meanwhile, Naruto and the others waited patiently until the possessed Hinata finished her work.

"How many are there to de-activate?" asked Tenten.

Neji activated his Byakugan and quickly counted the number of traps he could see.

"There are thirteen in all. It should only take her twenty minuted to finish them all up." he answered.

Naruto sighed. He crossed his arms and leaned back on a tree.

_'Please hurry Ino. The time you take to finish could mean Sakura's life.'_

---

Tsunade opened a document on her desk and started speed reading through the names that were listed.

"Shizune, how far is Orochimaru's base?" asked the Hokage.

"It's around five miles."

"Who are the quickest jounins we have?"

"Kakashi-san, Gai-san and Kurenai-chan."

"It's too bad Asuma is-... anyhow, could you please summon them?"

"Yes Tsunade-sama."

Ten minutes later, Kakashi, Gai and Kurenai were infront of Tsunade.

"You've all heard about Sakura's kidnapping, am I correct?"

They all nodded.

"I've sent your teams and Asuma's out to the base to retrieve her, but I'm beginning to worry. I need you three to catch up to them and help them."

They all nodded again.

"Dismissed!"

They bowed and turned to leave.

"You can count on us Tsunade-sama! Yosh! Youth power shall bring back Sakura-chan!" called out Gai before shutting the door behind him.

Tsunade sighed and giggled.

_'What a baka that one is.'_


	12. Chapter 12: Damsel in Distress

**Disclaimer: I own Naruto, and if you fall for that one you have problems.**

Crash!

Chouji broke right threw the thick wooden doors and was greeted with darkness.

"I think Orochimaru should re-consider the decoration here. Spiders are so last century." remarked Ino, watching her step to make sure she didn't step in unpleasant things.

"This is where I saw a presence coming from." said Neji, activating his Byakugan to check once more.

"This place looks like it's where Orochimaru usually is." said Shino.

"W-what m-makes you think that, Shino-k-kun?" asked Hinata.

"There's a throne-like chair in the center and lots of test tubs. He is a mad scientist after all." said Shikamaru, answering for Shino.

"And it reeks of him in this place." said Kiba, sniffing the air.

Tenten took out a scroll and twirled it around her. Weapons appeared out of the parchment and she tossed them all into the darkness. The sound of metal ripping clothes and flesh filled the air. Kiba covered his nose and coughed.

"Looks like you hit something. Whatever it was, it stinks of blood now." he said behind his hand.

"It could have been Sakura-chan!" shouted Lee worriedly.

"Nah, Akamaru doesn't recognize the scent. It's not Sakura." replied Kiba.

Hinata lit up a torch in the corner of the room and they all looked at whatever it was Tenten hit. A curtain with holes where the weapons had struck. Naruto, silent until now, walked up to the curtain and pulled it back.

Three Sound ninjas.

"Damn, if we would have captured them we could have interrogated them." said Shikamaru.

"No need."

All heads turned to Naruto.

"What do you mean?" asked Shikamaru.

"Tenten only threw ten weapons, but there are too many on their bodies for them to have been their own injuries." explained Naruto, keeping his voice monotone.

"You counted the weapons I threw?!" gasped Tenten, mouth wide open.

Naruto nodded and bent down by the corpses. He plucked a kunai out of one of the bodies and examined it.

"These aren't Konoha's or Orochimaru's weapon symbol." observed Naruto.

Hinata took the kunai from Naruto and checked the symbol herself.

"Th-they're Akatsuki's."

---

Sasuke stared in disbelief at the hallway full of dead guards.

_'What the hell happened here while I was gone?'_

_**"You tell me."**_

Sasuke bent down and examined the corpses. According to the look on their faces, they hadn't felt a thing before they died.

_'Who can kill like this?'_

_**"If whoever it was did this to the guards... what happened to Sakura-chan?"**_

_'Dammit!'_

Sasuke ran as fast as he could in the direction of the 'backyard'. He ran through the halls, turned right, skidded left and finally pushed through the door. He was nearly blinded by the bright light of day, but didn't stop running. He slowed to a halt around the river. A giant crater, kunai and shuriken stabbed into the ground, and drops of blood gave the once wonderful place look like a war zone.

_**"Well, we know that she fought back..."**_

_'Fought back against who?'_

A name written in the sand caught his attention. It was obviously Sakura handwriting and seemed to have been made with a kunai. He narrowed his eyes and he read it out loud.

"Itachi."

The sketch book he was holding dropped to the ground.

---

"Get away from me!"

Sakura kicked at the boy who tried to tend to her wounds. He sighed, took out some thick rope and tied her hands together. She growled and struggled to free herself.

"Don't you want your wounds to heal?" asked the boy in a monotone voice.

"No thanks! I can do that myself." she retorqued in a menacing voice.

She gathered her strength and ripped her hands free from the rope. She then concentrated her chakra into her right hands and began healing the bruises and cuts that she had gotten in her fight with Itachi. She looked around and found herself in a white room, sitting on a white bed in the same room with a boy in a black cloak with red clouds on it. Come to think of it, he was kind of cute.

_'Ugh! If I'm thinking this it's all your fault!'_

_**"Oh come on! It's true! He's soooo hot!"**_

The boy had red hair and dark red eyes. His hair style reminded her of Gaara's. Infact, he looked alot like Gaara. He had eyeliner around his eyes too, just not as much as the Sand shinobi.

_**"Hold on a second, if you think this guy is hot, does that mean you think Gaara is hot?"**_

_'Actually, I never really thought about it before...'_

_**"Hehe. I guess."**_

The boy turned around and put away the bandages.

"So you're a medic nin too." he said calmly.

"_Too?_ What do you mean by _too_?." she asked curiously.

"My name is Sasori. I'm the medical ninja of Akatsuki."

"Alright Sasori, mind telling me why I'm here?"

"Itachi-sama figured that your healing abilities could be useful to us."

"Hold on a second, if you're also a medical ninja, why do you guys need me?"

"I'm not that great of a healer. I fight better than I heal. I don't have the scholarship and can only heal basic wounds."

"And you guys think I'm just gonna co-operate with whatever you say? All the evil ones are so clueless these days..."

"I can't answer that. Itachi-sama is the one to ask."

Sasori turned around and left the room before Sakura could say anything else. She sighed and looked down at herself. The revealing black clothes she had looked rather dirty and mutilated.

_'Awww... and I was starting to like those clothes too...'_

_**''Why did you like them?"**_

_'They're... comfy?'_

_**"I do hope you don't think I'll believe that. You liked them because they showed alot of our good points around Sasuke-kun."**_

_'I guess, but that just makes me feel like Ino.'_

_**"Hehe... I know. It's weird."**_

Sakura got up and gasped.

"Holy shit!" she yelled.

The clothes were so ripped and full of holes that the material would probably literally fall off of her body anytime soon.

_**"Oh wow! Now I like these clothes even more! Sasuke-kun must love them!"**_

_'You are so sick!'_

"I'm guessing I shouldn't come in by the sound of it." said Itachi from behind the door.

"Only if you have some extra clothes for me!" she called back.

"Deidara is the only one with clothes around your size."

"That girl?"

"Oi! I heard that!" came Deidara's voice from further beyond the door.

"What, you aren't a girl?" asked Sakura.

"What?! Of course not! Are you crazy?!" he yelled.

"Sorry! My bad!"

"Like hell it is!"

The door opened only slightly and a bundle of clothes were thrown into the room. She caught it and immediately removed her mutilated clothes and put the new ones on. Normal, baggy black pants with a simple black t-shirt.

_'Atleast I'm not gonna go around wearing skimpy clothes.'_

_**"Hey! You liked those last clothes!"**_

_'Well I like these ones better.'_

_**"I wonder what Sasuke-kun would think of these."**_

_'Sasuke-kun... he must think I'm perfectly helpless!'_

_**"I like playing the damsel in distress."**_

Sakura mentally clasped her hand on her forehead.

_'My name is Haruno Sakura, I get captured twice in one week and am stuck with a perverted, over-dramatic Inner tormentor.'_

_**"YAY!"**_

You've got to love that Inner Sakura! Aww... Sasuke goes all the way to Konoha to get her sketchbook and when he comes back, shes kidnapped by an S-class criminal. LUCKY!

Feel free to ask questions and leave comments!

TomoenaRayelle


	13. Chapter 13: Horrible Pain

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, people would kill me.**

Naruto cursed out loud for the umpteenth time. They were currently tree jumping, on the way to the known where-abouts of the Akatsuki headquarters.

"P-please Naruto, calm d-down." Hinata pleaded.

"I'm sorry Hinata-chan, but I can't believe Sakura was just taken again! I'm surprised Orochimaru and Sasuke-teme let that happen!" he yelled, frustration obvious in his voice.

"We know that Orochimaru escaped, but I don't think that he isn't aware of Sakura's second kidnapping." remarked Neji mater-of-factly that annoyed Lee so much.

"He's probably planning something anyway." Shikamaru said simply.

"I say we just kick his-..."

"Rear. Don't swear Tenten-chan. Just say rear." interrupted Lee.

"Fine. We kick his rear anyhow." huffed Tenten.

"Definetly. We send that... person... to hell." yelled Naruto.

Lee smiled and everyone else cheered, except for Neji, being a wet blanket. Tenten just nudged him in the ribs.

---

Sasuke sped up once more. Tree hopping was something that Sasuke did often, so he had adjusted his steps to land on each branch without the risk of falling.

_**"Woah dude! You're going waaay faster than usual. What's up with you?"**_

_'Tch. You tell me smart one.'_

_**"Alright I will. S-A-K-..."**_

_'No! It's not because of her!'_

**_"I could have been saying sake! You jump to conclusions way too quickly. Admit it, you like her!"_**

_'If I did that, you'd never let me live it down.'_

_**"You've got a point."**_

_'Right... any idea as to why Itachi wants her anyway?'_

_**"Same reason Snake-dude wanted her."**_

_'But why Sakura? I thought he was after Naruto.'_

**_"Was. Past tense. Did you notice how much Sakura has gotten strong (and hot)?"_**

_'Right, now shut up before I trip and fall.'_

Sasuke sighed. Did he really think that way? Was he blinded by Sakura's beauty? Well... it was hard to miss. It was also hard to imagine that someone like her could seem so pretty. Three years ago, he would have normally thought that the nerdy girls would never get to be beautiful. Well, a little from both worlds never hurt...

Sasuke's thinking was interrupted by the presence of several chakras.

_'Eight... nine... ten. Ten ninjas? All the way out here?'_

_**"Hmm... there are the 11 genins... minus Sakura makes ten. You think it's them?"**_

_'You might actually be right.'_

_**"Why thank-yo-... Hey! What's that supposed to mean?!"**_

_'Figure it out.'_

_**"Oh hold on... they're behind us?"**_

_'Yeah.'_

Sasuke hid his chakra and lowered his altitude. After reducing his speed and hiding under the foliage of the forest, he could see several people tree hopping over him without noticing.

_**"Naruto, Hinata, Chouji, Kiba, Shikamaru..."**_

_'Tenten, Shino, Ino, Neji and Lee. They're all here.'_

_**"Looking for Sakura."**_

_'So?'_

_**"We could join them. The probability of getting Sakura back would be higher."**_

_'Do you really think they'll accept that? They want to bring her back to Konoha. We have to bring her back to Orochimaru.'_

_**"Why didn't that damn Snake lend us some ninjas?"**_

_'He was gone as soon as we got back from fetching the sketchbook.'_

_**"But where did he go?"**_

_'I have no clue.'_

_**"Then let's ditch him!"**_

_'What?! No! He can make-...'_

_**"Blah! We've been training with him for three years and still, he hasn't done much for us. That's three full years Sasuke!"**_

_'But...'_

_**"You and I both know he doesn't want to help us. People like him don't just give something freely to somebody. We're probably going to pay all hell for this."**_

_'We... we'll talk about this later.'_

_**"It's getting dark. Just set up camp soon."**_

_'Hn.'_

_---_

Sakura threw another chair at the door. It still didn't budge. She banged her fists against the door. It didn't even dent. She kicked hard at the door. Nothing.

"Dammit! Is this thing made of metal or something?" she yelled out.

"Steel." came a calm voice from the other side of the door.

"The hell? What are you-... where are you?"

"Beside the door, waiting for you to stop your futile attempts to free yourself."

Sakura, exhausted, slumped down and leaned her back against the door. She heard Itachi get up and leave.

_'I feel so useless... WHY? Why can't I do anything?! I want to go home! I want to see Tsunade-shishou. I want to go back home and talk to Naruto! I want to go back and shop with Ino! Why can't I be someone else right now?!'_

Sakura brought her knees to her chest and buried her face in her knees. A warm teardrop made it's way down her face. A waterfall of them followed it. Sakura's shoulders shook uncontrollably and she sobbed into her dark pants.

"Why... me?" she whispered.

"Why... is it... always... me?" she choked over her tears.

She let out an agonized screech and shook her head from side to side.

"I'm all alone! I finally get strong after three years and I can't even live like I'd like to!" she yelled.

Suddenly, her head felt heavy and it became hard for her to breath. She gasped and coughed. She sobbed and coughed until the point that she coughed out blood. Her chest felt like it was on fire and yet her body felt so cold. She tried to get up, but only tumbled to the ground. She clutched her stomach as she coughed and coughed. The seering pain in her chest told her that her ribs had cracked from the intense coughing fit. Sakura felt horrible. Pain took over her body and all of her started violently shaking.

_**"Shannaro! Speak to me! Are you okay? What's going on?"**_

Sakura couldn't answer. She could barely breathe and she could only see bright white. Her vision was gone and that bright, light white was the only thing she could see. She heard the door burst open before she completely lost consciousness.


	14. Chapter 14: Definite Hate

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, it would seriously damage the balance of this universe. So... NO.**

_**"Shannaro! Will you please answer me! What's going on?!"**_

_' ... inner?'_

_**"Finally! You haven't been answering for eight hours! What's wrong with you girl?"**_

_'I... I don't know. Owww... everything hurts so much...'_

_**"Yeah what's with that? You screamed then you hit the floor pretty harshly."**_

_'Is that so? All I remember is pain... well... everywhere.'_

_**"You got me really worried. Heck, even the Akatsuki was worried. That was the first time I saw Itachi display worry."**_

_'Itachi?'_

Sakura opened her eyes weakly. Her eyes hadn't recovered and all she could see was that bright white.

_'Ugh... can't see squat. Can you?'_

_**"Yup."**_

_'Be my eyes, would you?'_

_**"Sure thing."**_

_'Just tell me who's there and where I am.'_

_**"Hmmm. You're still in that room. You're in the white bed and Sasori is sitting to the left. Itachi is in the corner, leaning back on the wall and looking hot as ever. Hmmm... I love what he's wearing!"**_

_'Focus!'_

_**"Oh... sorry. Umm... let's see. Oh wow."**_

_'What?'_

_**"We're plugged!"**_

_'Huh?'_

_**"We've got a bunch of needles stuck in our arm, connected to pouches of water or something. Heck, we've even got one of them oxygen thingies on our mouth."**_

_'Look to your right. There should be some sort of monitor or something.'_

_**"Yup. It's got lines going up and down."**_

_'Alright... apparently you have no clue what that is.'_

_**"You know what? You're right!"**_

_'FIne, then let me do the rest.'_

Sakura closed her eyes and concentrated whatever chakra she could muster into her ears. Tsunade had taught her to use selective hearing.

Beep... beep... beep... beep... beep... beep...

_'Good. It's steady.'_

"So what exactly happened Itachi-sama?" asked Sasori.

Sakura moved her hearing to her left side and eavesdropped on their conversation.

There was a long silence before Itachi answered the beginner medic.

"I heard her scream and cry. Then she fell over and I could feel her chakra flicker, as if she was in pain. When I came in, she was unconscious." he said monotonously.

"Did she have a fever at the time?"

"Yeah. Her hands were cold though."

"Alright. I've read about that. It's good that you came to get me. If you hadn't, she would have overheated and died."

_'I... would have died?'_

_**''Woah... harsh."**_

Sakura's breath suddenly came in harsh gasps and she started coughing again.

"Oh... right. She was also coughing." added Itachi, as if he didn't care.

_'That... bastard! He's taking this so lightly! I could have __died_

Sakura felt her own heart beat faster and faster, but she ignored it.

_'He... he is SO dead!'_

Her breath sped up and the coughing fit returned, only worse than before. She gasped as she felt the cracks in her ribs deepen.

_**"Woah! Outer, calm down! I'm too young to die!"**_

Sasori rushed over to the monitor and pressed a few buttons. He changed the bag of transparent fluid and twisted a knob, making the doses double. Sakura's coughing eased and her heart returned to a normal rhythm.

_'That Itachi... he's not at all like his brother. I __hate_ _him!'_

_**"Yeah, now he's gone from sexy beast to normal hot..."**_

---

"Hinata! Come with us to get some water!" Kiba called, waving a bucket over his head. Shino just held his beside him with his free hand in his pocket.

"C-coming!" she called back, running to join the noisy Kiba and Shino.

She grabbed a bucket and set off to find the river. She left behind everybody who was trying to set up camp without starting a war. She figured they wouldn't mind if she got away for a while.

Kiba turned and, grinning from ear to ear, led the group to the nearest water source. Akamaru yipped happily beside his owner as he trotted proudly. Hinata didn't speak, which never goes unnoticed by Kiba.

"Yo Hinata, what's eating you?" he asked.

"N-nothing!" she said instantly, almost as if he'd been waiting for him to ask that question all along.

"You're lying."

"N-no I'm n-not!"

"You're not fooling anyone..."

"I'm not?... umm... okay. I just f-feel a presence that seems so familiar..." she whispered softly.

Shino stopped walking and looked up.

"I feel it too. It's familiar, but I can't remember who it belongs to." he said.

"Akamaru seems to recognize him too." said Kiba, referring to the tiny white dog, sniffing the air and wagging his tail.

Kiba sprinted towards the scent and his teammates followed him. They jumped over rocks and branches until they arrived into a clearing. A waterfall spilled it's contents into a lake of clear, pure water. Many peeks of giant boulders passed the surface of the water and created small islands. Sitting on one of them, gaze locked on the three, was the prodigy, the Uchiha hero, the missing nin and Sakura's long lost love; Sasuke.

Identifying the scent, Akamaru started growling. He hated traitors. Hinata clasped her hand over her mouth to stiffle a gasp. Shino glared dangerously and Kiba pulled out a kunai.

"Not even a hello?" taunted Sasuke.


	15. Chapter 15: Teaming Up

**Disclaimer: NOOOOO!!!! As always, I do not own Naruto!!!!!**

Sasuke took a step forwards, but paused when Akamaru growled dangerously. He rolled his eyes and vanished. Kiba, Hinata and Shino looked around frantically.

"He moves too fast for the naked eye to see." stated Shino as his fighter's stance seemed to tighten.

"Bingo."

With no time to even blink, Sasuke was behind Shino with a kunai pointed to his throat. Hinata gasped and dropped her kunai. Before anyone said anything else, Sasuke moved away, freeing Shino from his life-threatening grasp.

"I'm not here to fight." he stated blankly as he let his kunai fall out of his grasp and land on the ground.

"You sure seem to show us differently!" Kiba growled.

"You're looking for Sakura, right?"

Hinata stepped up and nearly shouted, "W-where is she?!"

Sasuke looked down, a slight hint of guilt in his eyes, that only Byakugen could see.

"Itachi..." he whispered.

Hinata's eyes narrowed and she ran up to Sasuke, gripping him by the shirt and holding him high above the ground. "You just let her get caught?! First you kidnap my best friend, then you just toss her over to your brother?! What's wrong with you... you... you... you puffball for brains?!"

Kiba stared, jaw dropped, blown away and completely stupified. Was this Hinata? When did she get so worked up? It was probably the first time Kiba heard Hinata call someone else by anything other than their name. And it was probably the first time he ever heard the insult _puffball for brains._ He had to stiffle a laugh, but Akamaru ran over to Hinata and yipped happily, almost as if he was encouraging her.

"I didn't just hand her over to him. I hate him, remember? He's probably treating her like crap right now." Sasuke growled.

---

_'He's treating me like friggen crap!'_

Itachi was sitting on a chair beside the bad, his feet on the bed, right beside Sakura's face. He was casually reading a scroll on battle tactics.

**"Well, atleast he's not reading a porno magazine. That would have been classic."**

_'Hahaha. I'm so bored. Can I please wake up and kick the brains out of him?'_

**"Well, you're awake. All that's missing is that you get up and have your foot make contact with his face."**

_'I was asking if it was wise to do so...'_

**"Of all the people to ask that question, you pick me? The one with the minus twenty IQ?"**

_'Oh sure, let's go ask Shikamaru way over in Konoha if it's a smart thing to do.'_

**"Ain't that kind of far?"**

_'Oh Kami! What the heck is replacing __your__ brain?'_

**"Puffballs!"**

_'You're hopeless! Screw what you think, I'm totally gonna kill him.'_

Sakura opened her eyes and looked to her right. Itachi's face was hidden behind the green scroll he was reading. She inched her hands to her side to push herself up.

"Good morning Sakura-chan." he said in a monotone, see-if-I-care voice.

"What makes it good?" Sakura growled.

"Good point." he replied.

Sakura gathered chakra in her fist.

"You sure you wanna do that? After all, I'm right beside the monitor. If by any chance I push the flashing red button, good-bye Sakura-chan!" he chuckled.

"...bastard..." she whispered.

"No, my parents were married when I was born." he said as he closed the scroll and shut his eyes.

"You're right. The name doesn't quite suit you. How 'bout asshole?" Sakure hissed.

"If it makes you feel better, call me an asshole all you want."

**"Woohoo! Asshole, asshole, asshole, asshole..."**

_'Here comes the headache...'_

---

Hinata twiddled her fingers nervously, sitting on a log near the fire. Kiba was pouting, drawing god-knows-what in the dirt with a stick and Shino looked dead, sitting with his arms crossed (nothing new there).

Everyone in the camp, Gai's group, Kurenai's group, Asuma's group and Naruto stared at their guest in confusion.

"Ahem..." Hinata cleared her voice. "S-Sasuke-kun wishes to h-help us get Sakura-ch-chan back..."

"Then what will you do with her? Take her back to Orochimaru once we get her out of the pile of crap you put her in?" sneered Ino.

"What guarantee is there that you won't turn on us?" asked Neji.

"What happened to the giant purple bow that was on your back last time?" inquired Lee, pointing at him with a dumb look on his face.

"I can't guarantee anything, but I have been thinking of leaving Orochimaru..." started Sasuke.

"Bullshit!" yelled Kiba, pointing his stick at Sasuke as if he was going to kill him with it. "According to what you say, you haven't killed your brother. Why would you leave Orochimaru if he can give you the power to kill the little son-of-a-..."

"Kiba-kun!" yelled out Hinata. "Don't swear please!"

"Kiba's right though. You have no reason to leave him. Why would you?" asked Neji, eyeing Sasuke as if he could pull out a kunai and attack any time.

"No."

Everyone slowly turned to where that sudden protest came from. Their eyes rested on Naruto. His eyes were still blank and he was sitting, back leaned against the tree.

"No." he repeated.

"No what?" asked Chouji, opening up a bag of nachos.

"You have a reason to leave Orochimaru, don't you Sasuke?" asked Naruto.

Sasuke had just noticed his former friend. His eyes went wide as he saw the dullness of his once all-telling eyes. He took a moment to return to normal, but then he answered Naruto's question.

"Yeah. You probably already know what it is." he said, staring Naruto in the eye. Naruto only nodded.

"Then what is it?" asked Tenten out of confusion.

There was a silence... then Sasuke calmly said; "You'll find out with time."

Another silence, well, until Lee jumped up and broke it.

"You didn't answer my question! What happened to the big purple bow yu used to wear Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke lifted an eyebrow at the bug-eyed freakozoid.

"I looked in the mirror, that's what happened." he said, causing a riot of laughter among the group.

Sorry for not updating sooner! Lots of stuff happened...

Questions? Comments? Requests? Please review and I'll do my best to answer.

TomoenaRayelle


	16. Chapter 16: Mixed Feelings

**Disclaimer: Dumm deee dooo... who me?**** No, I don't own Naruto. Why?**

_'Deep in the dark, clouded corners of my mind, sleeps an undiscovered, fear of mine. I used to believe she'd fight it away, used to believe her heart was here to stay...'_

**"I didn't know you wrote poetry!"**

_'It was in one of Orochimaru's books. It's the story of the heart broken shinobi named Yusaka.'_

**"Why would orochimaru have a sucky love story?"**

_'I dunno. He had alot of stuff, and I was bored.'_

**"I was sort-of wondering if he really was transexual... Wow! Now I have proof!"**

Sasuke slapped his head, feeling a very unrelaxing headache coming on. He didn't care, no one saw. Everyone was sleeping. Durng the day, they had moved forwards another fifteen miles or so at top speed and he felt they were infinilty closer to the Akatsuki hide-out now. Being an insomniac, he decided to take the night guard shift. The only reason he was reciting poetry in his head was because he was bored out of his mind. What's more, Inner Sasuke payed a visit.

**"...hmmm... we should have a bouquet of red roses at the front of the aisles... then have a white carpet cover the floor. Maybe it should be outdoors!"**

_'What the hell are you mumbling about now?'_

**"Ain't it obvious? The wedding!"**

_'Who's wedding?'_

**"Naruto and Hinata's!"**

_'And just why do you think they should marry?'_

**"Can't you just see how they're sleeping? She's freaking using him as a pillow and he's using her as a teddy bear! Isn't love filling the air or what?!"**

_'Hn...'_

**"Don't **_**hn**_** me! You know darn well that you're jealous!"**

_'Prove it!'_

**"Duh, ****I**** can feel the emotions that ****you're**** feeling as well. Jeez, for an Uchiha, you ain't got much brains."**

Sasuke felt a chakra level rising, then completely vanish. There was no mistaking it...

"Sakura..." he breathed. Standing up slowly so that no one could hear him, he jumped off of the ground and travelled by jumping from branch to branch, using the last trace of chakra he felt as a guide. Once in a while he would take out his kunai and mark a tree with a straight line and a little triangle that would tell Naruto and the others what direction he was going in.

---

She breathed heavily as she caught her breath. She was sprawled on the ground, blood slowly leaking out and making a little puddle underneath her shoulder.

"I will say it once more; join Akatsuki or die here, Haruno."

Twisting her head upwards once more, she glanced at the towering man with horror-filled, but stern eyes.

"N-ne...ver." she choked out.

**"What a cruddy wake-up call!"**

_'Tell me about it...'_

Sakura's vision blurred, but she blinked several times to clear it. Her head was getting heavy, but she forced herself to stay awake. Rage consumed her, but she did nothing to prevent that. Heck, anyone would be angry if they were woken up in the middle of the night, demanded to join Akatsuki then launched onto the wall. She had tried to punch him with a fist full of chakra, but a mild form of Mangekyou Sharingan drained all of the little chakra she had left out her weakened body.

Itachi frowned, then a devilish smile replaced it. He picked up Sakura ever so gently and sat her down on the bed. He brought his hands up to her face and stroked it gently, almost like a lover's embrace. Sakura melted into his touch, feeling at ease and forgetting the pain that came from her shoulder.

**"Hello! Wake up Shannaro! He is EVIL! This man's not Sasuke-kun!"**

_'But I'm so tired... and his hand is so warm...'_

Just as Sakura was about to fall asleep in Itachi's arms, her head was immediately jerked up to meet his face.

"If you join Akatsuki, you will be equal with us, treated with respect. You can have your own part in our society and earn your share in the rewards. Most of all, you can be at peace like you are now." he whispered gently in her ear, careful to choose the right tone to seduce her into joining.

Sakura shivered at their close proximity, and was almost tempted to say yes, when suddenly, she felt all her energy restored. Her brain was thinking straight again and she knew what to do.

"NO!" she screamed and pushed Itachi away, backing towards the window.

Itachi sighed and looked her in the eye. Then his eyes travelled to the window.

"Looks like my brother has arrived." he said in a disgusted tone.

"Sasuke-kun!" exclaimed Sakura as she turned around to face the window. She could indeed feel his chakra coming closer. Then she saw Itachi jump out of the open window she was standing at. She watched him land on the ground. For a second, the joy in her mind stopped her from thinking. Then, she finally caught on.

"Sasuke-kun!" she yelled, climbing over the ledge of the window to then start climbing down the brick walls. It would have been so much easier had she not been on the umpteenth floor. Knowing she had no chakra left to let herself fall and absorb the shock of the landing, she placed her hands and feet in every slight gap she could find in the wall. Unfortunately, there weren't very many, and it was a long ways down...

---

**"You sure that was Sakura's chakra?"**

_'Of course. It was tainted with fear, so i'm afraid of what may be happening...'_

**"Do you think Itachi... is... well, you know, abusing her?"**

_'He's not a pervert, but it's possible.'_

**"What are you waiting for! We've got to save her!"**

_'What do you think I'm doing? Jeez, I guess when Hinata said "puffball for brains" she was referring to __you_

**"Ouch. That hurt."**

_'Tch. Baby.'_

Coming to a clearing, Sasuke encountered a big white building. He was still half a kilometer's distance from it, yet that only proved it's immenseness. It almost looked like Tsunade's tower back in Konoha, but the atmosphere around it wasn't as welcoming. A blurry dot caught his attention. It was hard to figure out what it was in the obscurity of nightfall, but he know that if it moved, it was alive. It looked like a person.

_'Why would someone be climbing down the wall?'_

**"Why not? I always found that it was quite fun knowing that one wrong step will send me tumbling down to the merciless ground."**

_'I hope with all my heart that you're being sarcastic.'_

**"Oh my gosh! Call the newspaper company and everyone in Konoha! Sasuke has a heart!"**

_'Ouch... now __that__ hurt.'_

Sasuke stood observing the figure climbing down the steep wall, until it's grip slipped and the body fell through the air.

---

She didn't know what was going through her mind, but she felt someone's gaze burn holes through her and she lost concentration. First her foot seemed to slide out of the crack she had placed it in, then the next thing she knew, she was heading head-first down to meet the earth. The few seconds she was flying seemed to last for hours. She almost liked it to have the wind flap her bubble-gum hair around, until the realisation that that nice feeling would end with her being flatter than a pancake.

Then something flashed before her eyes.

---

He didn't know why he ran to help. He really didn't! He just had a feeling that anyone that stupid couldn't be part of Akatsuki. After all, if you can stick to trees using chakra, walls shouldn't be an exception, right?

Out of all the things, who would have thought that the figure he randomly caught was the one he came to save. Her mind must have took some time to register what was going on, because she looked completely lost. Not only that, she looked cute when she was confused. She looked cute, and she was wearing clothes that were obviously too big for her and were slipping off of her shoulders...

**"What luck!"**

_'Perv...'_

­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­

Cliffy! Please do hate me! That, and review!

TomoenaRayelle


	17. Chapter 17: Breaking the Chains

**Disclaimer: I own the plot, but nothing else except my two cats.**

"Did you feel that Orochimaru-sama?"

"Yes, Kabuto. It's almost time to retrieve what's ours."

---

Sakura's cheeks turned pink, then realizing why Sasuke was smirking made her whole face look like an overly ripe strawberry. She brought up the collar of her shirt a little more for modesty's sake.

"Are you hurt?" Sasuke asked her, straightening his thoughts.

"N-no..." she answered.

"You're lying." he concluded, referring to the wound on her shoulder that hadn't stopped bleeding yet.

"Then why did you ask?"

"I was bored."

"Oh, so now I bore you?"

"Hmmm... nah." he said, crashing his lips onto hers.

She was amazingly happy. Infact, her inner self was jumping up and down and shooting fireworks everywhere. But deep inside, Sakura was mostly confused. After breaking the kiss, she silently whispered; "Why?"

"Because you're cute when you're confused." he snickered.

Sakura smiled, then a tear streamed down her face, followed by another. Sasuke frowned and wiped the tears away.

"Did he hurt you?" he asked, concerned.

"No... it's just..." she burried her head into his shoulder and silently cried. "I missed you." Sasuke stroked her head and hugged her, trying his hardest to console her.

"What a disgusting sight. Little brother, your weakness is this girl and you didn't even hide it. It's too bad you'll die because of her."

Sasuke turned his head and saw Itachi, leaning against the white building he figured to be the Akatsuki hideout. He didn't have his cloak on and he was twirling a kunai lazily with one finger. Itachi charged at the two, but Sasuke jumped out of the way and placed Sakura somewhere safe. As Sasuke and Itachi's kunai clashed, Sakura could only watch.

_'Hold on... he'll die because of __me_

**"Technically, Sasuke-kun did come here because ****we**** couldn't fight back against Itachi, and because ****we**** couldn't escape."**

_'Oh no... Sasuke-kun!'_

Just as Sakura thought this, Sasuke was thrown back and his back scraped across the ground. He winced, and sat up. As he tried standing, his body stiffened in pain. Itachi used this advantage and flung more kunai than Sakura could count. Sasuke wasn't able to avoid them. They would hit. He shut his eyes and waited for the piercing knives to wound him and possibly end his life.

They never came.

---

"Damn that Sasuke-teme!" yelled Naruto.

He had felt Sakura's chakra flare about a half hour after Sasuke had left. He woke the rest of the group and they all were chasing after the nearest sources of chakra, which happened to be Sasuke's and Itachi's.

"How could he just leave without telling us? That stupid bas-..." started Kiba

"K-Kiba-kun!" whined Hinata. "Please stop swearing! It's gonna rub off onto someone e-else!"

"Don't worry guys, the bastard's not far." announced Tenten.

"Too late..." whispered Hinata, head down in defeat. Nevertheless, she activated her Byakugen and examined the scene. She gasped and stopped right in her tracks. Everyone stopped with her.

"What is it Hinata-chan?" asked Ino.

"Sakura... she's... no... oh no..." she breathed, then fainted.

---

It was like a classical movie. The girl saves the guy by putting herself in the way of the attack. But normally, it ended happily, right? The girl recovered from the blast and they lived happily ever after. Too bad the kunai actually hurt. Alot.

Blood dripping from both her hands petrified Sasuke. There she stood in front of him, arms outstretched, looking more courageous and loving than ever before. There were kunai piercing her shoulders, legs and arms. Four were jabbed into her chest, missing by mere inches her heart and lungs. The most serious injury was at the base of the neck, between both clavicles. Sakura couldn't tell if it had severed anything important, nor did she care.

Suddenly feeling a burst of chakra inside of her, Sakura glared at Itachi and jumped thirty feet in the air. She grabbed two kunai, pulled them out of her own skin and flung them at him. Obviously, he dodged them easily, but didn't see the second attack coming. She seized his shirt's collar and lifted him high in the air with her inhuman strength.

"Stay away from Sasuke-kun." she hissed dangerously before tossing him into the wall of the Akatsuki hideout and adding a crater to the building's decor.

Itachi pulled himself out of the giant hole and glared at Sakura. She returned his stare and threatened him with her eyes.

"Tch. Must be in her week..." he told himself, then left with a puff of smoke.

Sakura stared at the empty spot where Itachi used to be. Once she was sure we was gone, she relaxed and let the adrenalin slowly leave her blood vessels. Then came the pain. Normally, when adrenalin takes hold of your body, it makes your nerves ignore pain and forget physical limits. Now... when that stops, everything hurts.

Sakura gasped as the cuts that were inflicted on her seemed to burn and throb. She pulled out the ones on her legs and arms, but before she could reach for the one that seemed worse, she collapsed backwards. As if waking up, he dashed to catch the wounded kunoichi.

"Sas...uke...-kun." she gasped. She stroked his face and gave him a warm, pleasant smile. Then, her hand dropped and her eyes closed slowly.

Sasuke felt the unshed tears burn his eyes, but he held them back, because an unpleasant chakra that he recognized so well was nearly right behind him.

"Oh my. Seems we were a little too late Kabuto-kun." came Orochimaru's snake-like voice.

Sasuke twisted his head slightly, holding Sakura's limp form in his arms.

"She's still alive Sasuke-kun. I can heal her. Hand her over to us and she'll live." said Kabuto, stretching out a hand towards Sasuke.

Sasuke pondered for a while, then stood up and carried Sakura bridal style. He walked towards Orochimaru and Kabuto.

"Good choice Sasuke-kun." hissed Orochimaru.

Sasuke just said something resembling "Hn." and kept moving towards them. Just as Sasuke was mere feet from the two, Naruto popped out of nowhere and landed a good punch on Sasuke, making sure not to harm Sakura.

"What the hell Sasuke-teme?!" he yelled, standing between Kabuto and Sasuke.

"Hn." was the only response from Sasuke. He stared Naruto in the eye and seemed to communicate something to him. Naruto immediately stopped moving and backed away, letting Sasuke move forwards. As soon as he was beside Orochimaru, the Sannin whispered something into his ear.

"Good job Sasuke-kun. Threatening Naruto-kun with a hostage was quite interesting."

Sasuke sighed and turned an evil eye to his former sensei.

"Get lost snake breath." he hissed, taking out a kunai with a free hand and stabbing it into Orochimaru's throat.

A deafening screech came from the dying man. Kabuto ran to him, attempting to heal the stab wound, but it was too late. Orochimaru fell to his knees, trying to stop the bleeding with his hands. After five minutes of intense pain, he fell face forwards into the pool of his own blood. Before he died, he yelled one last thing:

"Damn you Uchiha Sasuke!"

Then all was quiet.

Well, I've been wanting to kill Orochimaru for a while now. I finally let it out!

We've still got some chapters coming up, so stay tuned!

TomoenaRayelle


	18. Chapter 18: Operation Procedures

**Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, I wouldn't be writing fan-fics.**

Sasuke looked down sadly at the barely alive kunoichi in his arms. As soon as Kabuto had disappeared with Orochimaru's corpse, Naruto was by his side trying to help bandage up Sakura's wounds, life finally showing in his cerulean eyes.

"Hinata learned some healing from Tsunade-sama, right?" Sasuke asked hurriedly, inspecting the wound below Sakura's neck.

"Yeah, but no luck. Neji's coming with her on his back. She fainted." Naruto replied, sort of embarassed, trying to keep the conversation short. No such luck.

"Jeez! At the freakin' worst times! What's wrong with that girl..." Sasuke growled, more to himself than to his friend.

Sasuke's anger trip was cut short by the sudden gagging from Sakura. He sat her up and supported her back to help her breathe better, but it only made things worse. A thin line of blood trickled down out of the corner of her mouth and the coughing became more serious. By the time Neji and the rest had arrived, Sakura was shaking and more than just a line of blood poured down her chin. Neji shook Hinata, Kiba poked her in the head and Ino yelled in her ear. She wouldn't wake up.

"You guys don't know how to handle this." said Naruto after getting up and walking towards the Hyuuga heiress. He bent down and whispered something in her ear.

Her eyes immediately popped open and her cheeks glowed bright red.

"N-Naruto-kun! That's so... s-so... inappropriate!" she squeaked.

"No time, we need your help." said Sasuke flatly.

Hinata crawled over to get a good look at Sakura and gasped as she saw the pool of blood gathering and spreading beneath her best friend. She felt light-headed and was about to faint once more until Naruto shook her abit so she could regain her concentration. She nudged Sasuke away and set Sakura down after clearing the ground of any rocks or twigs.

"Kiba-kun, please find water and bring some here." she ordered, tossing him her water bottle. "Shino-kun, I'll need your bugs to clean out her wounds. Ino-chan, I have medical supplies somewhere in my bag. I need two packages of bandages, dissinfectant and a cream that you'll find in a green bottle."

Hinata sighed and gathered chakra in her hand. She gently pressed on the least serious wound; the shallow one on her ankle. After a minute of healing, she turned back towards the group.

"Shikamaru-kun, I need a special kind of herb called _Mimirose_, could you and Chouji-kun go get some?" she asked. They nodded and set off. "Neji-kun, could you and Lee-san please search for very thin pine needles and anything I could use as thread?" They both departed immediately. "The rest of you, you need to hold Sakura down. This may hurt and we can't have anything going wrong. It's our only shot."

Hinata examined the wound more closely and sighed.

"All you boys had better go do something else..." she said after pondering for a few minutes.

"What? Why?!" yelled Sasuke and Naruto.

"Because we have to take off her shirt." she said, glaring at the two. They reddened and got up silently, followed by Shino, but Hinata held him back. "We need your bugs." was her reason. He sighed and sat down beside Hinata.

"Lucky..." whispered Naruto. Sasuke hit him over the head. They walked into the forest to warn the rest of the boys of the operation.

Ino brought the medical supplies Hinata had asked for and she took her place infront of Tenten. They pulled off the black shirt that she had gotten in Akatsuki headquarters. Luckily, it was big and it slipped off easily.

"I don't know what we would have done if she was wearing that blue dress again. It would have taken hours to find all the buttons!" exclaimed Ino.

"I counted. There are 47 in all, but then there's a zipper on the side." answered Tenten. Ino stuck her nose up and said, "That's what I said! It would have taken hours!"

"Focus!" scolded Hinata.

"Sorry..."

---

"Sasuke-teme, do you love Sakura-chan?" asked Naruto with his face full of cake.

Sasuke choked on his piece of cake and turned red in the face.

After having taken a walk in the woods, they had warned all of the boys not to walk in on the girls, especially not if the undressed Sakura was awake because they may never once again see the light of day...

Naruto had randomly pulled out some sponge cake that he carried around with him if ever he was hungry, which happened often. He had split it and given one to Sasuke once they were sitting down on a rock near the edge of the river. And now, Sasuke was killing himself with that piece of cake.

Naruto sighed and slapped Sasuke's back, making the stray piece of cake fly out and fall into the water. Ironically, fish came and nibbled at it while Sasuke cursed at the cake in his hand, but took another bite of it anyway.

Naruto rolled his eyes and repeated his question, "Do you _**love**_ Sakura-chan?"

Sasuke just looked up and looked back at Naruto. "She's nice."

Naruto pouted and looked at the river. "I do love her. Problem is, she loves you, but you don't seem to return it."

"What about Hinata?"

"What about her?"

"Weren't you hanging around her lately?"

"I guess... I do like her, but what would her father say? And how painful would Neji's fist on my face be if I were to go out with her?"

"Hmm... good point."

There was an awkward silence between them. Then Naruto chuckled. "You're such a bad liar Sasuke-teme."

"What did I lie about?"

"You love Sakura-chan, but you're all too high and mighty to admit it." he laughed.

**"Yeah Sasuke-teme! Quit being all high and mighty! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAAA!!!!!"**

_'Stay out of this or I'll have you removed one way or another.'_

"Hn." countered Sasuke.

"Don't 'Hn' me mister High and Mighty! I speak english. Not Uchiha." shot Naruto.

"Don't call me that." commanded Sasuke. Naruto just stuck out his tongue.

"Not until you swallow that pride of yours." he said through a dorky smile.

"And I'm supposed to do that... how?"

"Let's see..." Naruto pondered it for a minute, and broke out into a laugh. He stopped and leaned towards Sasuke, whispering his thoughts. Sasuke paled considerably. Naruto kept on with his explanation as he turned pink, red, then... blue.

He fainted.

Sorry for not updating... I went on vacation and got a gazillion bug bites. I had, like, two on each finger, so I couldn't type...

TomoenaRayelle


	19. Chapter 19: Mmm Rice Cake

**Disclaimer: I can't give you sneak peeks of Naruto because I dont own it... but I can write fan-fics!**

Naruto tugged an angry Sasuke behind him, laughing his head off. "Mister... High-and-Mighty... fainted! This... is sooo... rich!" he managed between giggles.

"It's not like it hasn't happened before. Remember the Chuunin exams? We were both out for hours!" he growled. Naruto stopped laughing and looked down in shame.

_'And we left Sakura fight alone...'_

"This is different!" he sighed, resuming his idiocity. "So, are you gonna pull through, or will I have to catch you before you black-out?"

"Hn..."

**"This is gonna be soooo fun! You'd better not pass-out Sasuke-chan."**

_'Oh stuff it.'_

Naruto poked his head through the last bush that seperated him from where the operation was taking place. Lucky for him, Sakura's shirt was back on and Hinata was only bandaging a wound on her arm. Her relaxed face suggested that there was nothing that endangered Sakura's life anymore.

"Come-on wussy, you should be there to greet your lover when she wakes up." shot Naruto, pulling the Uchiha along faster.

Hinata turned around and blinked at Naruto. "O-oh, I didn't think y-you would b-be back so s-soon, Naruto-kun."

"Yeah. If it had been ten minutes sooner you'd be dead by now." chuckled Tenten.

"Why?" Naruto asked, confused. Ino smiled. "Sakura woke up for a couple of minutes and nearly knocked all of us out."

"What happened?" asked Sasuke with an expression of worry on his face.

"The pain k-killers hadn't taken effect and we h-hadn't closed up all of her wounds y-yet. In her s-screaming pain her fist nearly m-made contact with each one o-of our faces." explained Hinata, embarrassed by her lack of self confidence to stop her studdering.

"It was hell." whispered Shino from a corner. Naruto smirked. "You got to hang around Shino, you're a lucky man.". Shino turned red and hid his face in his hood. He muttered something about idiots and how they have no idea what they talk about.

Hinata did her best to stop from laughing. Ino and Tenten had tried, but failed to contain their laughter. Soon, Kiba, Chouji, Shikamaru, Neji and Lee returned with their materials. Hinata finished her job and closed all the disinfected wounds.

---

The rest of the day passed quickly. Everyone took turns guarding the camp in groups of three. Soon, night fell and the group had fallen asleep. All except for Sasuke, who insisted to guard alone.

Turning her head a little in a shifty, sleepy way, Sakura bumped her forehead on a rock right near her face.

_'Owie...'_

Softly opening her eyes, her blurry vision made out Hinata; sleeping cozily within arms reach, Naruto; sleeping nearby as well and Sasuke; back turned to her and gazing out into the forest. She turned herself slightly and soundlessly, as to not wake up the others, and painfully, she pushed herself onto her knees. She nearly gasped as she felt a sharp pain run up her leg, but held her breath and tottered to her feet. Sasuke didn't seem to have heard.

_'Maybe he's asleep...'_

_**"Then wake him up."**_

_'That's just mean!'_

Nonetheless, Sakura silently stepped over her sleeping comrades and took quiet baby steps to reach Sasuke.

Then, her foot landed on a small twig. _Crack_

Sasuke's head jerked upwards and he vanished, only to reappear behind Sakura with a kunai's tip pointing at her throat. He paused and rushed to let go of her once he realized it was Sakura.

"S-... sorry. I thought..." he whispered.

"It's okay. It was also my fault." she whispered back. She looked around to make sure no one heard their little scene and motioned her head to the path Naruto and Kiba had made to get to the small waterfall not far away. He nodded and followed her to the more private area.

Once Sakura was on a patch of grass she found particularly comfy, she sighed and smiled at Sasuke.

"So, how are you?" she asked in a cheery tone.

"... you didn't have to do that..." he said without looking at her.

Sakura lifted an eyebrow then puffed her cheeks out like a stubborn child. "I'll decide what I have to do and what I don't! you got that, Uchiha Sasuke?"

He looked up with a slightly confused look. That wasn't the reaction he was waiting for at all. He smiled abit and resisted to laugh at her cute puffy look. Sakura closed her eyes and tilted her head back.

"Thanks, Sasuke-kun." she said softly.

"For what?"

"You saved me. Had you not caught me, I'd be like a squished rice cake right now."

_**"Mmmm... rice cake."**_

_'Okay, you just ruined the moment, Inner...'_

Sasuke smirked, but as he looked at the waterfall, he remembered his bet with Naruto and went pale.

"Are you alright, Sasuke-kun? You look... kinda green." asked Sakura.

"Uhh... yeah... I'm fine! You must be sleepy! Let's get you back to camp and all rested up!" Sakura looked confused, but Sasuke ignored it, helped her up and back to camp.

He settled back down to his guard spot and stayed there the rest of the night. Once in a while, he would look over his shoulder to check on Sakura, but he didn't dare get too near her for a while. Especially with his pride on the line for tomorrow...

---

Naruto woke up with a stretch and a big dopey grin. _'Today's the day!'_

Sasuke woke with his head hidden in his arms. _'Today's the day...'_

The day for what? Well, next chapter will tell.

Sorry for not updating recently... with school starting soon and stuff...

TomoenaRayelle

Ps: Currently working on another story that will be posted once I have a couple chapters ready. Excited?


	20. Chapter 20: A Slap to the Pride

**Disclaimer: I do NOT own Naruto for fear of persecution and assasination in my sleep.**

Hinata walked towards the camp with her wet hair sticking to her neck and shoulders. She held a damp towel in her arms and a few cleaning products.

"I f-finished taking my bath, Sakura-chan." she called to her pink-haired friend.

"Okay. How was the water?" she asked.

"It was slightly c-cold..."

"That's alright, I feel gross and haven't had a good bath in forever. I don't really mind cold."

Hinata smiled and nodded. She gave Sakura a fresh towel, soap and shampoo. Sakura thanked her and turned to take her bath.

"I'll be back in a bit!" called out Sakura and turned to the river.

---

Sasuke sat overhead on a high-up branch, leaning back with his eyes closed and listening to the two girls talking.

"I'll be back in a bit!" called out Sakura.

Sasuke's heart sank. It was time. He sighed and discretely followed Sakura overhead, hidden by the foliage. As he neared the river, he heard Sakura humming to herself. He calmed himself with the sound of her voice, knowing that it would be louder and angrier and accompanied with a beating if she ever found out what he was doing.

The humming stopped as she stopped. Sasuke froze.

Sakura turned her head left and right, then nodded to herself as she began taking off her shirt. Sasuke sighed and forced himself to look. Luckily, her back was turned to him, so he had more time for mental preparation.

_'Alright... things aren't too bad so far...'_

_**"Are you kidding? They're great!"**_

_'Shut up.'_

_**"Hey, I'm not the one being a Peeping Tom."**_

_'It's not my fault! It's stupid Naruto's fault!'_

_**"Oh, but I **__**know**__** you want to!"**_

_'Shut up!'_

_**"Oh come on, assert your manhood! You really need to after wearing that messed up outfit back at Orochimaru's base."**_

_'Hey! I changed after a while cause it was too frikkin' girly.'_

_**"But it still took you a while."**_

_'SHUT UP!'_

_**"Hush up, she's taking off the shorts!"**_

_'YOU HUSH UP!'_

_**"Heh, told you you wanted to be here."**_

_'Aargh! I'm ignoring you! You-...'_

Sasuke did indeed hush up, because the sight he saw was quite new for him.

---

Sakura came back humming happily. Sasuke was already back at camp, sitting on a rock and poking the fire with a dead twig. When he saw Sakura, he reddened and poked a little harder at the fire. Naruto took that action as a "_I did what you told me to" _sign from Sasuke's part, and giggled madly.

Sakura paused a little and shot puzzled looks at both Sasuke and Naruto. Sasuke just turned cherry-red and Naruto grinned sheepishly. Sakura dared not ask. Good for both her and Sasuke's health...

---

"Alright! Now on to the next part of the bet!" announced Naruto.

Sasuke was in the center of a circle consisting of Kiba; smirking pervertedly, Shikamaru' not quite knowing why he was there, Chouji; not really caring as long as he had his chips, Neji; having been dragged there against his will, Lee; having no clue but still being majorly excited, Shino; no particular change, and Naruto himself; being the only one besides Kiba who really understood what was going to happen.

Sasuke looked around and sighed. He looked up at Naruto.

"Do _they_ all have to be here?" he asked, sort of hoping he'd find a way out of this, even if it wasn't very like him.

"No... they don't." answered Naruto after thinking a little.

"But we want to see you stoop to me and Naruto's level." smirked Kiba. The ignorant people in the circle just shrugged.

Naruto cleared his voice and announced in a loud voice: "Now that everyone's here and no one else is around, I will present the second part of the agreement between Sasuke and I." This seemed to interest a couple of spectators and they stopped their squirming.

"The great Uchiha Sasuke, whom we have just re-integrated into our group, will face the initiation test!"

Everybody lifted their eyebrows at this. Initiation test? They had never heard of it.

Sasuke shot a hateful glance at Naruto. "You never told me this was some initiation. Who says I want to be part of you guys?"

"Says the future sixth Hokage. Now shut up and let me finish." scolded Naruto. Sasuke's eyebrow twitched. "As I was saying, the agreement consisted of..." Naruto let a moment of suspense pass by. Some faces were eager, confused, or just kind of dumb-looking.

"Peeping at Sakura-chan taking her bath!" he announced loud and pride. Jaws dropped and gasps were heard. Sasuke looked down. There went his reputation... "Now, Sasuke-sama," sneered Naruto, "... show us what you saw!"

Sasuke flinched. His heart pounded so hard he swore that it would rip out of his chest. Slowly, he raised his hands, formed a seal, and a puff of smoke covered him.

---

Sakura enjoyed a breeze of fresh air as she strolled through the winding paths of the forest. She contemplated how the cool wind felt wonderful on her healing wounds.

She stopped as she heard voices carried by the wind. She closed her eyes and focused.

"... show us what you saw!"

It was Naruto, she was sure of it. What could the idiot be doing now? However, she recalled how empty the camp was with all the guys seemingly missing. The girls and her all figured they went somewhere to test their skills or something, but she wasn't entirely convinced.

For some reason, she really wanted to know what they were up to, so she followed the voices until she came across a small clearing. About half a dozen people circled a lone person. She squinted and identified those people as being the missing boys, and the one in the center was... Sasuke? Were the ganging up on him? Sakura had to know.

She squatted down and masked her chakra, hiding behind some bushes, close enough to hear but far enough to not be heard.

Sasuke formed a seal. The seal was familiar. Naruto had done it many times...

_'... Sexy-no-jutsu?!'_

---

The smoke cleared and there stood Sakura (who was really Sasuke), naked, with only a minimum of smoke covering vital parts.

The reactions were all different.

Naruto: Gaping and grinning, with a slight awe about him.

Kiba: Cheering loudly with his dog barking in approval beside him.

Shikamaru: Hard to tell, he fainted.

Chouji: Eyes wide, munching a bit faster on his chips than usual.

Shino: Turned to leave.

Neji: Nose bleed.

Lee: Eyes wide, mouth wide and a "how youthful Sakura-chan is" expression that was quite easy to read.

Sasuke changed back and looked up, ashamed, just in time for a punch on the jaw and flying sideways ten feet. Everyone seemed to wake out of a daze and stared upon the pink-haired bullet that had just emerged from the woods. She was panting heavily, red as a tomato and with a lust for blood gleaming in her eyes.

Tenten, Ino and Hinata heard screams of pain from somewhere in the woods. Shino came out of the woods at that same instant, and sat beside the campfire. Ino gave him a look that clearly read: _"What the hell is going on back there?"_

Shino shrugged. "Didn't stick around long enough to find out."

Taa-daa dum!!! I haven't updated forever because I hit writer's block, then depression, then a funeral then more depression.

Anyhow, here's an update that I find was quite fun to write. Reminder: This story is coming to an end. Two... maximun three more chapters. I'll have more stories coming up though. Promise!

TomoenaRayelle.


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